Oops I Accidently Married Your Father
by Alyxx
Summary: Let's just say time can be re-written...
1. Chapter 1

Oops I accidently married your father.

Let's just says time can be re-written

The year is 1945, inside a chapel in England a wedding is being performed, unknown to the bride and groom the Nazi's bombs are on the way. But they know they must hurry because what they do know is Hydra is coming. As such these two very unlikely lovers pray to a god that neither of them believe in, that their wedding would go ahead.

"Do you Natasha Romanoff take Howard Stark to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

2015

'_Agent Romanoff, Mr Stark is requesting your presence in his lab and asks that you bring your feather butt friend with you.' _ The ever polite voice of JARVIS informs Natasha.

"Thankyou Jarvis, tell him I'm on my way." She replies.

"Of course ma'am." He responds. And so she heads down to her team mates lab wondering what the hell he's done this time.

"Ahh, Natashalie you came! I have something to show you it's this knew super cool invention that I think for once I won't regret making!" Tony said a few minutes later when she enters the lab, little does he know how wrong he really is.

"What is it?" Natasha asks impatiently not even bothering to reprimand him for what he called her.

"A Time Machine, just don't step on that bit of floor there, I haven't quite got the safety mechanism worked out so if you do it will send you back to whatever time it's programmed to immediately." He responds while pointing at a bit of floor.

"You can't be serious? A time machine, you don't honestly expect me to believe that do you?" she says to him while rolling her eyes.

"It's true, I'm planning on going to see Steve before he took the super soldier serum, what do you think?" Tony asks.

"I think your insane if you think she's gonna fall for that Stark, hell even Steve wouldn't fall for that, no offense Steve." Clint says as he walks in and Steve runs past him into the lab.

"Guys, we have a problem, I think Banners about to, you know, lose it. As in the other guy is coming through." Steve explains flustered.

"That's not good, that's not good." Stark says. Thor comes running in the room from the other door which unfortunately Natasha was standing in front of, he knocked her onto the very bit of floor Tony told her not to step on.

"Um Stark?" She says when a glass cylinder comes up around her from the ground.

"Shit, Natasha I can't shut it off, you're going to be sent back to 1943!" Stark yells.

"WHAT?!" everyone else yells at Tony.

"Two metres by two metres, that's all. Just a small square of floor you weren't to touch and that's where you get pushed!" Tony mumbles while playing with the controls.

"Well, how the hell do I get back?" Natasha asks.

"There isn't a way! I hadn't made that part yet!" he says, "Natasha, you are going to have to find my dad and explain the situation, hopefully he will be able to build a machine to bring you home again! Nat I'm so, so sorry this wasn't meant to happen." Tony says getting hysterical. Steve just looks at her, she nods to him.

"I guess I'll probably be seeing you soon." Natasha says before light seems to swirl around her, a loud rumbling fills the room and then she's gone.

"STARK BRING HER BACK!" Barton screams at him, grabbing his shirt and pushing him against the wall.

"I can't Clint, I'm sorry." Tony says calmly to him.

"Clint, there's nothing he can do and this, this isn't helping. It's up to Natasha and Howard now." Steve says.

"Friends, I apologise for knocking lady Natasha, but there is another problem Banner's lost control. I was able to trick the Hulk into the cage but he isn't calming down." Thor says apologetically but urgently.

"I'll go try and calm him down." Tony says after removing Barton's hands from his shirt.

1943

A bright blinding light later and Natasha has no idea where she is. Or even quite possibly when. Only now is she beginning to believe it is a possibility that Stark was telling the truth. She looks around when all of a sudden she gets knocked over, when she turns around she sees a tall brunette man and a very short and skinny man. The big man is on the ground as he was the one who shoved her over.

"Oh, I am so sorry ma'am, my friend, he isn't very aware of his surroundings." The skinny man says, it takes her a second before she recognises Steve, and realises that the man who bulldozed her must be Bucky Barnes.

"Oh, it's alright, no harm done. I wasn't exactly watching where I was going either so it's half my fault." Natasha says after getting to her feet. It's then that she realises how daft she must look, it's the forties and she's wearing leather pants and a skin tight top, thankfully long sleeved. That and high heeled black boots. From what she had heard about Bucky she isn't surprised by what he said next.

"Nice outfit." He commented, Steve hit him.

"Uh, I'm Steve Rogers, this is Bucky Barnes." Steve says. It occurs to her that while with Bucky and Howard and everyone else knowing her real name won't matter, but Steve it will.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Natalie Moore." Natasha says instead.

"Uh, here let me make it up to you Miss, we were just about to go to the Stark Expo, would you care to join us?" Bucky asks, ahh men from the forties, even the Bucky's of the time are polite, she thinks.

"Umm, sure." Natasha says, it means she'll have a chance to speak to Howard Stark and then she should be able to get home.

"Well, then let me lead the way." Steve says. Natasha takes one final look around to memorise where she is so she can come back here when she gets sent home, that way she'll be in the right place. It's funny, she thinks, that in seventy years Stark tower will be in this exact spot. Nat then follows Steve and Bucky to the expo. When they get there Bucky informs Steve that he got them both dates, they both look at Tasha awkwardly for the moment.

"Oh don't worry about me really, go have fun. And thanks for you know walking with me." Natasha says a little awkwardly. Steve still doesn't look very comfortable with leaving her though. "Actually, I'm really sorry but I've just remembered I have to do something um I got to go but nice meeting you." She says, Steve seems mollified.

"Sorry for running in to you." Bucky says.

"No biggie, see ya." She says not realising that it was unlikely anyone said no biggie in 1943. She walked away to behind a building where she waited for the end of the expo. Afterwards when Howard walked by she had had time to think of what she would say to get him to help her.

"Mr Stark?" she asked to check she had the right man, he looked nothing like the photo's she had seen.

"Yes doll face?" he asks.

"Hi, my names Natasha Romanoff and I need you help with a problem of mine." She says, it surprises her that he doesn't make some sassy comment but she notices that her voice is anything but flirtatious at the moment and he has picked up on that.

"Oh, and why would I help you?" he asks instead.

"Because I have something I know you'll want to see." She says flirtatiously before chucking him her Stark phone, which luckily doesn't actually say Stark on it anywhere. He presses the button and it turns on.

"What is this?" he asks curiously.

"My Mobile Phone. It's from the future." She says feeling completely ridiculous.

"I'm sorry what?" he asks incredulously like he couldn't believe his ears.

"It was made in 2013. I'm from 2015. I got sent back in time by a friend of mine by accident, but the machine was incomplete and I need your help to get me back, and you're not believing any of this are you?" she says he shakes his head.

"Ok look I've got a few things on me that aren't from the forties, that should be proof, for god's sake that phone is advanced where I come from it should look alien to you." She says getting a little frustrated.

"This still doesn't tell me why I should help you." He says, though he's looking quizzically at the phone.

"Well, it's your family's fault I'm here anyway so I would say because you owe me, it was your design of a machine that sent me back and your son that did it, isn't it a fathers job to clean up his sons messes." She yells at him.

"I have a son?" he says.

"Oh crap, I said to much." She says.

"You have a foul mouth, I like it. I'll help you. But that means you have to be with me and I'm about to go to an army base to help with something, which means you have to come with me. Which means you have to have a reason for being there, so tell me, how much do you know about this time period?" he asks.

"You're going to help Dr Erskine create super soldiers. I know everything to do with that project and everyone involved. Except anything to do with how that serum was created, no one but Dr Erskine knows how that was made, or will be made." She says doubtfully.

"Alright, what about the machine what do you know of that?" he asks.

"Well I've seen the photos so I know what it looks like, and a very detailed drawing of the inside." She says. He nods.

"Ok, I can work with that, you'll help with building the machine, you'll be able to direct people and tell them when they're wrong so it will make it look like you really are my apprentice. Well Ms Romanoff, please hop into the car. We have something's to discuss." Howard tells me. A lengthy conversation with Colonel Phillips, which Natasha was not allowed to be in the room for, later and Howard and her are in the SSR base lab waiting for Dr Erskine to get there. So they took the opportunity to look over some of his old blueprints to see if the one Tony had used had been drawn up yet.

"Well, I can't read blueprints but it doesn't look like the right shape." She says while looking at the blueprint Howard had given her.

"Natasha dear, remind me, are you the scientist of the two of us?" he asks.

"No, I'm the assassin so watch it with the Starkasm." She says seriously.

"You're a what now? No doesn't matter look, this is the only one that showed any promise of working." He explains to her.

"Well, this isn't the one Tony used, so show me the one that you drew up because you were kind of drunk and thought would be awesome but never buildable, because your son has a habit of building those to prove you wrong." She says.

"This one, but it's not buildable for a reason no matter what time it is." He says handing over the blueprints, Tasha looks at them for a second.

"Because it needs an arc reactor to power it, just great. I don't know how to build one." She says exasperatedly.

"How do you know what an arc reactor is?" Howard asks.

"But you can." She says continuing her sentence, "You can build one, Tony built one in a cave in Afghanistan in a month while he was being held hostage. Surely you can build one, you haven't made the element yet but since it's not in your chest you won't get poisoned so you should be able to use palladium, if it's around that is." She says then turns to him looking hopeful.

"Am I that hard to keep up with when I talk?" he asks. She sighs.

"Look Stark, the Arc reactor is buildable. You're about to re write history and build it first which means you have to destroy it once it's built and never tell anyone you made it." She says.

"Alright, I can't promise anything, and it has to be in my spare time so it will take a while, but I'm Howard Stark, if anyone can it's me, and obviously my boy." He says, it was hard for Natasha to keep reminding herself that he was a shit father to Tony when he seemed so excited about having a son in the future, he kept talking about all the things he was going to do with Tony. But she knew that none of it would happen. Still she thought maybe just maybe, if we're all very lucky, maybe time can be rewritten after all.

"Ahh, Mr Stark I presume." Dr Erskine says when he walked into the room.

"Yes, you're Dr Erskine?" Howard asks.

"Yes, and who's this?" Erskine asks gesturing to Natasha.

"This is my Apprentice Natasha Romanoff, she's going to help me build the machine." Howard explained.

"Well, welcome aboard Fraulein." Dr Erskine says.


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2 – NOW WHO'S THE SMART ONE?

"Thankyou, Dr Erskine, I'm glad to be here." Natasha says, not for the first time thankful that Howard bought her some more fitting clothes.

"Well, let's get started shall we." Erskine says. We nod and get to work, Dr Erskine and two other doctors on the serum and Howard and Natasha on the blueprints of the machine, they both decided that since it was going to get built anyway it wouldn't matter if she helped make it quicker since either way the experiment would be at the same time. A few hours later Dr Erskine was explaining a bit of the chemistry of the serum to Natasha on one side of the lab while Howard calmed down on the other, they had a bit of an argument about the machine, he was designing to wrong and she knew he would have it change it but he decided that she was wrong. After a while she went back to work with Howard.

"No, you're going to build it wrong if you do it like that, the serum will be injected into his arms Howard not his head." Natasha said a while later knowing that Howard was building it too big for Steve. Of course he was designing it for a normal sized person, and it needed to be big for when he grew but the injection points needed to be lower.

"Yes and with how low you want them it will be in his legs." He yelled back, despite the fact that we were standing right next to each other.

"Du bist so ein Scheiß Kopf just listen to me!" Natasha yelled back, she had a habit of changing languages when she was angry, unfortunately she didn't account for the fact that there was a German in the room. (You are such a shit head) All translations will be written in brackets like this after the language has been used

"Das ist sehr störend zu hören, die von einem so hübsch Fraulein!" Dr Erskine said. Howard just laughed at me assuming I'd gotten in trouble. (That is very disturbing to hear coming from one so pretty Ms)

"Ich entschuldige Mich Doktor Erskine, aber er ist sehr Schwein geleitet." Natasha responded. (My apologies doctor Erskine, but he was being very pig headed.)

"Das ist nicht der Punkt Fräulein, aber ich bin neugierig, warum hast du das gelernt, Deutsch zu sprechen?" Dr Erskine replies. (That is beside the point Miss, however I am curious why did you learn to speak German?)

"Ich wurde dazu erzogen, viele Sprachen zu sprechen, Deutsch war einer von ihnen." Natasha answers. (I was raised to speak many languages, German was one of them)

"Well, it is very impressive Fräulein." Erskine says. Natasha nods and smiles at him. She then turns to Howard.

"Look, Howard the guy that gets picked is about my height and skinnier than I am." Natasha whispers very quietly to Howard only just loud enough for him to hear.

"How is that guy even alive?" Howard asks, Natasha just shrugs at him. So they get back to work. After that first day of work she heads to the room she was given. Natasha has been there all of ten minutes when there was a knock on the door, then it opened and in walked Howard.

"You know, generally when one knocks on a door they wait for an answer." Natasha informs him, though she smirks at him.

"Yeah, whatever, look. I have a problem with getting you home. You see there is no way to make it safer, someone would just have to walk onto the wrong bit of floor and they'll get whisked to the future, it would have to be on at a certain point in building and I've got nowhere to build it so that no one steps on it." Howard explains.

"No kidding, a bit of floor? Well, the other bad news is I would need to be at the right spot in Manhattan so I get sent to the right spot, which means that in the middle of New York anyone who steps there gets sent to the future, can you maybe make it portable?" Natasha asks.

"Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. Oh Natasha that's brilliant! You know, I'm gonna tell Tony one day about this amazing and hot redhead that gave me the best idea of my career!" Howard says enthusiastically. Again Natasha has to remind herself that he was horrible to Tony. "So, do you want to go get a drink, maybe dinner, the cafeteria here is disgusting!" Howard explains, she looks him over for a second considering everything wrong with accepting that request.

"Yeah, sure! Let me grab my coat." Natasha answers instead. So they head out, they walk to a bar that's a little full but not extremely over crowded. "So what is this place?" Nat asks.

"It's the Stork Club. All the soldiers come here in their down time and they have the best cheeseburger in Manhattan!" Howard says. "I mean, most women get a salad but, you aren't exactly most women are you?" he asks.

"No, I'm not. And a cheeseburger sounds great." Tasha reassures him.

"So, tell me. How does a beautiful dame like you end up in your line of business?" Howard asks being deliberately subtle.

"I wasn't most children either." She responds vaguely. "I wasn't raised like most kids, nor did I have the opportunity to like things most little girls like." She says. He nods and makes a mental note to ask when they aren't in public. All of a sudden a red head that Natasha recognises to be Peggy Carter, from the drawings she's seen of Steve's, walks over.

"Howard Stark on a date, not something I ever thought I'd see." She says.

"Ahh Peggy, nice to see you too. This is Natasha, Tasha this is Peggy Carter." He introduces despite the fact that I knew exactly who she was.

"Pleasure to meet you, and this is most certainly not a date." Natasha says politely.

"Well in that case, the pleasure is all mine." Peggy says.

"Ok, seriously what is so unbelievable about me having a date?" Howard asks.

"Really? It's you Stark, must you ask?" Nat asks. Peggy laughs. He just glares at me.

"Well, I'll leave you two to it, enjoy your night." She says walking off.

"Most certainly not a date? Really, am I that repulsive?" he asks.

"Howard, your son is a good friend of mine, so it's not that your repulsive it's that everything I've heard about you is from Tony's point of view. Which makes it kind of creepy to think about being on a date with you." Nat explains.

"Oh, well fair enough then I guess." He says. After dinner we stayed and drank for a while, even danced a little bit before he walked me back to my door. "Night Tasha, I'll see you tomorrow." He says.

"Night Howard." Natasha responds, she closes the door and leans against it for a minute, as she does she realises that he's been calling her Tasha half the night and she didn't mind. She just shook her head and went to bed deciding not to read too much into it.

The next day she goes into the lab to get to work.

"Guten Morgen Fräulein Romanoff." Dr Erskine says when she enters the lab. (Good Morning Miss Romanoff.)

"Guten Morgen Doktor Erskine." Natasha responds. (Good Morning Doctor Erskine.)

"Oh you two aren't going to start it with the German again, I find it very disconcerting. For all I know you're talking about me." Howard says from his desk.

"Yes, because you're our main topic of conversation. Dumm Kopf." Natasha responds. (Dumb head).

"Ok how about this, either of you know French?" Howard asks, Dr Erskine and I nod. "Alright, well that you can speak. Then I know what you're saying." He states.

"Oui monsieur!" Natasha says sarcastically. (Yes sir). And so began the tradition of speaking French in the lab. The next two weeks we spoke French to each other in the lab, Howard and Natasha would be having a conversation in English on the way to the lab, then the second they stepped inside they would switch mid-sentence to French. Then one day Dr Erskine came running into the lab.

"Je lui ai trouvé, il est parfait. Je ai choisi le sujet. Je suis sur Mon chemin pour aller lui parler. Ne pas briser le lab alors que je Suis allé!" He yelled, grabbing his briefcase; coat and hat before running out the same way he came in. (I've found him, he's perfect. I've chosen the subject. I'm on my way to go speak to him. Don't break the lab while I'm gone!)

"Finally, I was wondering when that would happen." Natasha said to Howard when they left the lab, having been on their way out when Dr Erskine ran in.

"Yeah same, though for you I imagine more so. So Stork club?" Howard asked, they had gone every night since the first night, but being the forties he asked every night.

"I'm in." She said. And so they went to the club.

"I assume you want your usual?" Howard asks when they walk in.

"Yes thankyou." Natasha responds. They both found their different speaking patterns interesting, Howard found himself saying things that Natasha says in front of Peggy that other people just don't say, and Natasha found herself sounding more and more like a proper lady from the forties. That night, they both drunk more than they should have, though neither were extremely drunk, they danced and ate a cheeseburger, and then drunk a bit more. Once again as has been the pattern every other night, Howard walked Nat to her door.

"Good night, Nat." Howard says.

"Good night, Howard." Natasha responded, they both stared at each other for a second, then the next moment they were making out. When they stopped for a breath they decided they needed to talk, and that given the circumstances, it couldn't wait until tomorrow. So they talked late into the night, about every reason them dating would be just plain wrong, continually coming back to the fact that Natasha might not be here long, and Tony. But that night they also kissed again, they spent the night together. And I don't mean sleeping together, I mean talking laughing, kissing and eventually falling asleep next to each other on Natasha's bed. The next morning Howard woke up first he looked over at Natasha and dreaded what he knew he had to ask when she woke up.

"Are you just going to lie there and stare at me all day?" Natasha asks when she wakes up and feels him looking at her.

"Thinking about it, good morning Tasha." He says.

"Mornin' Howard." Natasha responds.

"So, now that neither of us are drunk, what do you think about what we talked about last night?" Howard asked.

"I think that you look really hot when you wake up." She says to answer him, before kissing him again.

"The future is a very forward time isn't it. Haha, a relationship with you is going to be quite odd isn't it?" he asks.

"Ohhh yeah, be prepared for me swearing like a drunken sailor and being forward." She responds. They both laugh. "Oh god, when I get back to the future I will never be able to look at Tony in the same way!" Natasha says. They get up and get ready for the day, Howard going back to his room to shower and change, before they head into the lab.

"Ahh, Natasha, Howard il a accepté. Son nom est Steven Rogers s semblent préférer Steve." Dr Erskine informs us when we walk in. (Ahh, Natasha, Howard he agreed. His name is Steven Rogers, though he does seem to prefer Steve.)

"Voilà de bonnes nouvelles Docteur Erskine. Quand il arrivé ici?" Natasha asked as she and Howard walked over to the desk they share to grab the blueprints and put their stuff down. (That's great news Doctor Erskine, when does he get here?)

"Il est arrivé avec moi hier, il est actuellement en formation. Je crois qu'il court le circuit en une demi- heure si vous voulez marquer le long dans la voiture avec l'agent Carter, elle peut le remarquer. Bien sûr, elle aurait à accepter de vous apporter, mais vous deux se entendent si bien que cela ne devrait pas être un problème." Dr Erskine says, he seemed very excited about Steve. (He arrived back with me yesterday, he's currently in training. I believe he's running the circuit in half an hour so if you want to tag along in the car with Agent Carter, she can point him out. Of Course she'd have to agree to bring you but you two get along well so that shouldn't be a problem.)

"Bien sûr, merci médecin." Natasha says looking over to Howard who nods letting her know that he can manage to not blow up the lab if she's gone for a little while. (Of course, thankyou doctor.)

"Natasha, I'm going to start building the machine today so if you want to help start it don't be too long, coz with this thing I will start it as soon as safely possible." Howard says being the first person to speak English in the lab for weeks.

"Oui Monsieur." Natasha says sarcastically giving him a flirty wink on the way out. (Yes Sir.)


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3 – HOWARD STARK, DATING? PLEASE!

"Hey Peggy, mind if I tag along, I want to get a look at Rogers to have a bit more of an idea of measurements." Natasha lied.

"Sure Tasha, hop in." Peggy said, we had the radio on as we had to wait a while for the soldiers to run there so Peggy had brought a radio, because there weren't any in cars back then, Natasha found this very amusing.

"Howard Stark working on a new secret project for the military. Speculation as to what this project might be spans from building a new super weapon to secret contact with extra-terrestrials." The Radio said.

"Well, they aren't far off. He is helping with a super weapon." Peggy says.

"On another note Howard Stark spotted with a new dame at a bar in Manhattan. Three nights in a row, has the party boy settled down? Howard Stark, Dating? Please! That girl's living in the clouds if she thinks he's faithful." The Radio continues.

"Peggy, do me a favour and shut that thing off." Natasha requests.

"Sure, now still want to tell me that that was most certainly not a date?" Peggy asks her smirking,

"Yes, because that was most certainly not a date." Natasha says.

"Then what happened?" Peggy asks.

"Things change." Natasha explains vaguely not able to keep the smile off her face.

"Halt!" we hear the instructor yelling. "This flag means we're only at the halfway point, the first one to get that flag gets a ride back with Agent Carter." He yells. Everyone but Steve, who Natasha noticed was lagging behind a great deal, started trying to get the flag. "Nobody's gotten that flag in seventeen years!" the guy says smugly. Nat started looking smug too knowing what was about to happen. "Alright, fall in!" the instructor yells. "Rogers I said fall in!" he yells when he notices Steve going up to the flag pole. He grabs a bolt from the bottom and the flag pole falls sideways, he walks over grabs the flag, gives to the instructor before getting in the back of the jeep next to Tasha.

"I don't know any other soldier who would have thought of that." Natasha admits.

"Natalie?" Steve asks, oh crap Natasha thought, I forgot about that.

"Hey, Steve right?" She asks though she knew perfectly well what his name was.

"Yeah, what are you doing here?" he asks confusedly.

"I'm Mr Stark's apprentice." Natasha responded, despite her confusion at him calling her Natalie Peggy still chuckled at the word apprentice. When they got back to the camp Natasha went back to the lab so she wouldn't miss any of the building, but Peggy was hot on her heels.

"Je suis de retour, Docteur Erskine, il est parfait! Ai-je raté quelque chose Howard?" Nat asks when she walks in to the lab. (I'm back, he's perfect doctor Erskine! Did I miss anything Howard?)

"Non chérie pas une chose, en fait, vous avez juste à temps pour me aider à tout Ce panier à l'avant de la base!" Howard said in a way to chipper tone. (No Sweetheart not a thing, in fact you got back just in time to help me cart everything from the front of the base!)

"Yippee!" Nat said in English.

"Ok, One since when do you all speak French and two why are you all speaking French?" Peggy, who had been standing at the door since Tasha got there, asks.

"Because Howard didn't like Dr Erskine and I speaking German because he didn't understand us so we started speaking French and never really stopped." Natasha explains.

"Alright next, why dies Steve think that your name is Natalie?" Peggy asks, unfortunately both Dr Erskine and Howard heard her. "Also, when did you two meet before?" she adds.

"It's a long story and three days before I started here." Nat says avoiding the question.

"Three days before, that was the day we met and the day that, Ohh, but then why not, and I mean Natalie really?" Howard says to the confusion of everyone as he starts putting pieces together in his head.

"Warum haben Sie über Ihren Namen Fräulein?" Dr Erskine asks. (Why did you lie about your name Miss?)

"Es gibt etwas, ist man nicht Arzt wissen, und selbst wenn ich es erklären Sie mir nicht glauben. Aber da ich weiß, ein wenig von dem, was passieren wird, ich denke, ich zumindest oh du die Wahrheit ist es so hier. Mein Name ist Natasha Romanoff -Agent Ich bin aus der Zukunft. Das Jahr 2015 ich zurück geschickt und Howard versucht ti einen Weg finden, mich nach Hause zu bekommen!" Natasha explains, he just looks at her for a moment but surprisingly seems to believe her. (There's something's you don't know doctor, and even if i did explain you wouldn't believe me. But since I know a little of what's going to happen I suppose I at least owe you the truth, so here it is. My name is Agent Natasha Romanoff I'm from the future. The year 2015. I got sent back and Howard is trying to find a way to get me home!)

"I still don't understand why you told him your name was Natalie?" Erskine says.

"Because he is a big part of this time period and I cannot change that by adding my name to the mix. But with you three it won't affect anything!" Natasha says in English since she trusts Peggy.

"What is going on? What do you mean Time Period?" Peggy asks.

"Yes I sound like I'm completely nuts but I'm telling you the truth, look Peggy I'm from the future. Ok, Howards helping me get back. I know I sound like I'm high as a fucking kite which makes no sense to you but I do, in any case it's the truth!" Natasha says forcefully.

"Agent of what?" Erskine asks about a minute of silence later.

"Spoilers." Was all Natasha said before walking out to get the stuff from the other side of the base.

Later that night Howard came to her door and knocked, once again walking in without waiting for an answer.

"Hey, doll face, what do you say, Stork club?" Howard asks.

"You know what, I think that's exactly what I need right now!" Natasha says gratefully.

"Hey, come here." Howard says pulling her in and kissing her. He was half expecting her to pull away but instead she deepened it. A little while later they get to the Stork club.

"One week, in one week he'll be injected with the super soldier serum." Nat says.

"You know Tasha, you don't have to be there." Howard says knowing that she isn't looking forward to it.

She doesn't respond and instead asks, "How's my ride home coming?"

"Well, turns out making it portable is more difficult than I thought it would be and I'm still having a problem with the power source, is there anything else you can tell me about it, anything at all?" Howard asked being deliberately vague.

"It glows blue." Natasha unhelpfully responds.

"It glows blue, really you live in the same tower as the guy and the best you've got is it glows blue?" Howard asks highly amused.

"Alright, so I'm not a scientist, though with you and Dr Erskine explaining everything to me when I ask I'm getting better, I feel smarter already." Natasha replies. The rest of the week goes much the same way, bit of French, bit if English. Bit of German, by now all of the Dr's helping Dr Erskine were speaking broken French as well, in fact everyone in there spoke French more than they did English, one day Colonel Phillips came to make sure they were ready for the experiment the next day, he unfortunately walked in during one of Natasha and Howard's many arguments that Erskine was attempting to diffuse, all in French.

"Vous allez souffler Steve up!"

"Il va se transformer en un crapaud si je vous écoute Mme il se illumine en bleu."

"Excusez-moi, je ne Suis pas un scientifique Stark!"

"Voulez-vous deux se calmer et se concentrer sur ne souffle pas Steve ou le transformant en un crapaud!" ("You are going to blow Steve up!"

"He's going to turn into a toad if I listen to you Mrs It glows blue."

"Excuse me, I'm not a scientist Stark!"

"Will you two calm down and focus on not blowing Steven up or turning him into a toad!")

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON IN HERE?" Phillips yells.

"Вот дерьмо!" Natasha silently curses under her breath in Russian. (Oh shit)

"Oh, just a small spat over whether or not Rogers will be blown up." Howard explains.

"Well, I came to make sure you're all ready, I guess I got my answer! She needs to go Stark she's a distraction!" Phillips says angrily.

"Excuse me, I've done just as much work on this as everyone else I understand about a hundred percent more of this than you do Colonel, the only distraction here is you constantly breathing down my neck waiting for me to screw up, well I'll tell you something, this is just as much my project as Stark's and Dr Erskine's so go ahead try, kick me off it but don't be surprised when your whole super soldier plan turns to complete crap!" Natasha yells at Phillips before pushing past him and to her room.

"She's not leaving, she will continue to help just as she has and you will stop watching her so closely. We are ready and the plans will proceed tomorrow as scheduled Colonel." Dr Erskine says calmly. Phillips just leaves.

"I suggest you explain a few things about women in the forties and what she really has just done to your girlfriend Mr Stark." Dr Erskine says calmly. He nods, so he goes to Natasha's room and walks in without knocking, knowing she couldn't care less.

"Nat," Howard begins but she cuts him off.

"Yes I know, it's the forties, women don't have the right to voices or brains and men control their every move, well guess what Stark, I'm not from the forties. I have a voice and I will use it, I've got brains a hundred times bigger than his and I'll use them too and he can just go fuck himself because I can't do this anymore, ok I can't try to fit in, for god's sake I'm a seductress trying to be a proper lady from the forties. I mean come on it's a bad joke. The Black widow going to book club with the local ladies, I'm a slut Howard, I haven't been innocent or ladylike my whole life, I'm a weapon I'm an assassin it's all I've ever been and all I'll ever be and I can't do this anymore!" she yells before collapsing onto her knees. "I just want to go home." She says in a much quieter voice.

"Nat, you're an idiot!" Howard says. "You haven't been any of those things since you've been here, even when it's just the two of us so you aren't just acting, you have the capacity to do whatever the hell you like and no one is going to push you around. And more importantly do you know what you just said to me? You just said you want to go home. You've changed a lot more than you thought since you moved to America from wherever." Howard explains while holding her face in his hands.

"Russia." Natasha says.

"Should've guessed, you're a Russian spy/Assassin, do you even know how cliché that is?" Howard asks.

"Geez, is the word Cliché really this old?" Natasha asks jokingly.

"Oh Shut it Widow." Howard says.

"You know, you remind me so much of my partner sometimes. He's the one that brought me over to your side." Tash explains.

"Yes you mentioned him, Clint right?" Howard asks to which he receives a nod from Natasha, "See, I listen!" he insists, they both laugh. It being the middle of the day they head back to the lab and continue working on building the machine. Later that day Peggy came to the lab.

"Hey, I don't know what you did to Philips but I can practically see the steam coming out of his ears." She informs us.

"Oops, my bad." I say bitterly.

"I'm missing something aren't I?" Peggy asks, Dr Erskine nods at her.

"Right well, I'll leave you three two it, just make sure he gets through this alright!" Peggy requests.

"We're doing everything we can Peggy, don't worry. I'm certain he will." Natasha says, subtly hinting at the fact that she does actually know for sure.

"Thank you." Peggy says telling her that she got the double meaning. Peggy turns and heads back to her job.

"You practiced that speech didn't you, it wasn't just you having a mini melt down was it?" Howard asked.

"Oh no, I've been preparing for that since day one, men like the Colonel are so predictable. Thankyou for backing me up Dr Erskine." Natasha said.

"You're welcome Fräulein." Dr Erskine replied. An hour later Howard and I were both comfortable enough in our machine that we felt perfectly happy with the experiment being tomorrow.

"We're ready Natasha, it'll all be over soon." Howard says reassuringly.

"I know, he's going to be fine, and we're finished." Natasha agreed, and so they both went to Natasha's room, having decided not to go to the bar tonight, and instead going straight to bed.


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4 – WHY IS THERE ALWAYS A SACRIFICE?

The next day the both wake up early.

"Morning gorgeous." Howard says to Natasha.

"Morning Handsome." She responds.

"So, today's the day." Howard comments.

"Yeah, today's the day." Tasha repeats.

"Are you sure you want to come Tash?" Howard asks.

"Yeah, I have to be there, for Peggy and for you, and Steve and most importantly Erskine." Natasha says, knowing that today's the day he dies.

"Why Erskine?" Howard asks.

"Don't ask How unless you're sure you want to know the answer." Natasha says calling Howard 'How'.

"Come on, we should get going." Howard reminds her, she nods and they get ready. When they arrive Steve and Peggy aren't there yet, Tasha goes to Dr Erskine needing a few things to be said.

"Doktor Erskine, ich möchte nur wissen, egal was heute passiert, eine wirklich erstaunliche Mann du bist. Und Sie bereits einen so großen Unterschied für so viele Menschen getroffen haben, ist Steve so viel mkrw dankbar für Sie und die Chance, dass Sie ihm gab, als jemand wirklich zu verstehen. Ich möchte auch Sie wissen, dass nicht jeder hat über Deutschland vergessen. Ich weiß, weiß, Howard und Steve weiß, dass wir einen Krieg gegen die Deutschen, wir Sind gegen die Nazis kämpft nicht kämpfen. Vielen Dank für alles, was Sie für Mich getan haben, bin ich sehr dankbar!" Natasha tells him. (Doctor Erskine, I want you to know, no matter what happens today, you are a truly amazing man. And you have already made a big difference for so many people, Steve is so much more grateful for you and the chance that you gave him, than anyone can truly understand. I also want you to know that not everyone has forgotten about Germany. I know, Howard and Steve know that the war isn't against the Germans, we are fighting against the Nazis. Thank you for everything you have done for me, I am very grateful!)

"Thankyou Fräulein." Erskine says. Then Steve and Peggy walk in and he goes over to them.

"Hey chérie, what's wrong?" Howard asks Natasha when she walks back over with tears in her eyes.

"I'm fine, I just wish everyone was." Natasha responds vaguely already mourning the death of someone who hasn't died yet.

"Well Tash, why don't you go sit down for a moment? There's nothing more to do yet anyway until we start." Howard suggests.

"Yeah, I will. Thanks How." Nat says before sitting down. Peggy goes up to the viewing room while Steve gets into the chamber that Tasha helped create, if something went wrong it was partly her fault, why didn't she just let Howard build it, then she would know for sure that Steve would be fine.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we will be performing an experiment today that will change the war. (Lol sorry can't remember the speech, but you all get the gist of what he says so I'll just skip to when he finishes talking.)

"Are you ready Steven?" Dr Erskine asks, Steve nods so Erskine injects him with the antibiotic.

"Well, that wasn't so bad." Steve says.

"That, was the antibiotic." Erskine explains, Steve's face drains of all colour. He gets injected with the blue serum which Natasha now knows how to recreate, not that she'll tell anyone that. Then the machine closes and Tasha holds her breath. Howard starts to turn the wheel.

"10%." Natasha says rather loudly. "20, 30, 50, 60, 70, 80%" Natasha is saying as it goes up, all of a sudden his screams make her stop. She starts freaking out, though logically she knew that this happened originally so it's probably nothing. That doesn't stop her from checking with Peggy before telling Howard to continue after Steve yells at them to continue.

"100%" Howard and Natasha yell. Then the capsule opens and Steve suddenly looks more like himself. Natasha has to stop herself from running over and hugging him because as far as he knows the two of them don't know each other very well. Everyone is congratulating them, Nat sees the gun first. She pushes Howard to the ground so that he doesn't get hit before running for Erskine, she gets there but not in time, all that she's in time for is getting shot herself in the leg, though she doesn't notice. She runs after the guy grabbing the gun she has hidden on her for this purpose. She shoots the driver of the car the guy got into, she could have shot the other guy too, but she knows how important it is that Steve chases after him so she pretends to try and hit him. Howard comes running out three minutes after Steve pushed me off the road, he comes over to me.

"Tasha, are you ok?" he asks.

"Yeah I'm fine, Dr Erskine?" she asks hoping they managed to save him. But Howard shakes his head.

"Natasha, you've been shot!" Howard says, it's then that she notices the blood running down her leg.

"It's a flesh wound, I've had a lot worse, I'm fine." Natasha insists.

"Нет, Наташа вы, нет!" he says in what little Russian he knows. (No Natasha, you're not!), "Please get checked out, at least for my piece of mind." He pleads. She nods and he sighs in relief. She gets fixed up and hasn't been released yet when Steve comes in and his blood gets drawn.

"Natalie? What happened to you?" Steve asks her.

"I was too slow." She responds.

"You did what you could Nat." Howard says, using the first part of her name because it's also the first part of Natalie.

"He's dead isn't he? He's dead because I didn't get there quick enough." Natasha says, Howard doesn't respond realising that he's not going to change her mind.

"Hi, can I leave now?" Natasha asks a nurse who walks by, she's trying so hard to be polite right now, Howard thought.

"Ma'am you were just shot in your leg, and you're likely in shock, so I'm sorry but no." the nurse says before going over to get more blood from Steve. Peggy walks in and up to Steve. Nat gives her a pleading look before looking over to the Nurse.

"I think that's enough don't you?" Peggy asks the nurse, referring to the blood. The nurse nods and takes to where ever she needs to, leaving no more medical staff in there.

"Thank you, I owe you one." Natasha says as she walks past Peggy and hobbles out the room, Howard not far behind her.

"How many times have you been shot before?" Howard asks when they get back to Natasha's room on base. After Dealing with Phillips when Howard told him what he knew about the sub. Phillips then tried to get Tasha off the base again but Howard reminded him that she wasn't there for that experiment she was his apprentice which meant she stayed. And helped with the projects they would be giving to him.

"A lot more than I care to count." She responds.

"Come on, we aren't going to the club so I think we should go to the roof!" Howard says and that's what they do, lie down on the roof of the building. "So I've been thinking, Phillips is going to kick us off the base till he finds something else he needs me to do. And you don't actually have a place so I was wondering if you want to stay with me, and you know live together?" Howard asks a little awkwardly.

"I'd love too." Natasha responds realising it was difficult for him to ask that for whatever reason, though she would have said yes anyway. They lie there for a while, Natasha liking the feeling of lying in his arms and looking up at the stars.

"So, Natasha, what was it like where you grew up?" Howard asks not realising the magnitude of what he's asking her to tell, him. But she does tell him, she starts from the beginning and goes all the way to joining SHIELD, though not mentioning the name. And she doesn't go any further because that's stuff he can't know. It's difficult to get through, something's more so than others, but he's patient and helps however he can, and by the time she's finished she's glad that she finally told someone the whole story.

The next morning they wake up in bed, having gone back downstairs an hour after Natasha finished her story. Howard goes back to his place to pack up his stuff, as does Natasha. Then she goes to the lab for her things there.

"Je suis désolé Docteur Erskine, je suis désolé!" She says just before she closes the door when she leaves. (I'm sorry Doctor Erskine, I'm so sorry!) She then goes to the front of the building where she meets Howard who is speaking with Phillips.

"Ms Romanoff, so sorry to see you go." Phillips said sarcastically.

"Likewise." Nat said with the same level of sarcasm.

"Alright, well, we should get going chérie." Howard said. He gets in the car. But before Nat gets in she walks up to Phillips.

"Let me guess, I've done something wrong again?" Phillips says not giving a shit about what she says.

"If you'll believe anything I say make it this, you will wish you had kept Rogers around." Natasha says before getting in the car. When they get to Stark's place Natasha is surprised that it's a mansion though she isn't sure why she's surprised when she really should have been expecting it.

"Welcome to my humble abode." Howard says as they walk in the front door.

"Humble my ass." Nat says, "Not that you'd get that." She adds when she sees the look he's giving her.

"Welcome back Mr Stark." A skinny British man says as he walks into the room.

"Thankyou Jarvis, Natasha, this is Mr Jarvis, Jarvis, this is Natasha Romanoff." Howard says, Natasha trying so hard not to let her mouth hang open, this was the real Jarvis.

"A pleasure to meet you Ma'am." Jarvis says politely to her.

"Oh believe me, the pleasure is all mine Mr Jarvis." Natasha says trying desperately to keep the excited happiness out of her voice. Then Jarvis heads into the other room to perform his duties.

"Well you seemed Giddy, like you'd just met well me." Howard says.

"That was Jarvis?!" Natasha quietly but very high pitched squeals. "I've heard more about him than I have about you. I mean Tony practically worshipped the guy." Natasha says. "Please don't ever tell him I told you that or tell anyone about me squealing and acting like this."

"Don't worry chérie I won't." Howard says crossing his fingers behind his back and making sure she sees that, she shoves him.

A few months later.

"A year, I've been living in the nineteen forties for a year." Natasha says at breakfast one morning.

"I was wondering if you'd remember that, honestly hoping you weren't." Howard says before answering the ringing phone. "Hey Peggy, to what do I owe this great pleasure?" he asks.

"He what now? That's crazy! You've told him it's crazy right? Uhh, yeah sure I'll be there in an hour. Oh and tell him he's crazy." Howard says to the phone before hanging up.

"Well chérie, feel like a trip to England?" Howard asks Natasha. Half an hour later finds them on one of Howard's plane's on the way to England.

"So I think I've solved the final issue I was having with the Arc Reactor. Now I just have to build it, and the rest of the time machine. I did everything I could of the time machine without the power source but now that needs to be completed before I can do anymore." Howard says starting to regret asking her out. She'll be leaving in a few months if everything goes to schedule. They land in a small air space in England, Peggy and Steve get on board before we immediately take off again.

"Hey Steve how many laws are you breaking by doing this?" Natasha asks wondering how wrong about Steve everyone really was, because based on what she'd seen of him in the forties, he ain't no patriotic goodie tushoos Captain America.

"No idea, a lot." He replies.

"So Agent Carter, I was wondering if when we land you want to go out for a late night fondue." Howard asks knowing Natasha won't mind Peggy joining them for cheese and biscuits.

"How, you did that on purpose you asshole." Natasha says to him realising he just did it to screw with Steve.

"So are you two, do you… 'Fondue'?" Steve asks. Nat hits Stark for causing this.

"Stark is the best civilian pilot, we're lucky to have him." She responds not even dignifying the question with a response. All of a sudden we're under fire.

"As soon as I'm clear get the hell out of here." Steve yells at Peggy.

"No we're taking you all the way in." She yells back.

"Turn this plane around and leave that's an order." He yells.

"You can't order me you don't outrank me!" She points out.

"The hell I don't, I'm a Captain." He yells before jumping out the plane.

"Natasha, does he make it back?" Peggy asks, Natasha stays silent knowing that this is one of those things they can't know in advance. "Natasha, does he get back?" she yells at me.

"I can't answer that Peg and you know that." Natasha responds sincerely sorry that she can't help more. But Steve has to do this on his own and Peggy has to have her own faith in him.

"Steve, please be alright." Peggy says quietly, she thought no one could hear her, but Natasha did.


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5 – CAPTAIN AMERICA

When the plane landed back in England the three of them went to the army base.

"What the hell was going through your head that made you think you had the authority to do that Carter?" Phillips yelled at her.

"He was going to do it anyway, I thought we should at least give him as much help as possible so that America's new hope wasn't lost." Peggy explained to him.

"That wasn't your decision to make Agent Carter." Colonel Phillips informed her angrily.

"Oh for crying out loud Phillips get your head out your ass, someone had to make the decision and anyone who would trust you with it is more of an idiot than you are, he's gone, he'll make it back, he's a better soldier than you give him credit for Colonel." Natasha yells. Howard just face palms.

"You're out of line Romanoff, then again when aren't you?" Phillips retorts.

"I prefer the term, not busy kissing your ass." Natasha replies.

"Well, we'll just leave you two too it I think, Nat!" Howard says after Peggy tries not to burst out laughing.

"I think I've covered everything. Nice to see you again Colonel." Tasha says.

"Oh the pleasure was all mine." Phillips says, his voice dripping with sarcasm and anger.

"Nat, you know that didn't really help anyone." Howard says.

"It helped me!" Natasha replied, they suddenly hear a lot of kerfluffle, so they go and check it out. And there is Steve and Bucky, along with everyone else who had been captured coming home.

"Faith huh?" We hear Phillips say to Carter.

"You're late." Peggy informs Steve.

"Transmitter was broken and I couldn't call my ride, had to walk all the way from Austria." Steve says.

"Hey, Steve? Is that the girl I knocked over a year ago?" Bucky asked when he saw Natasha standing by Howard.

"Yeah, her name was Natalie by the way, she works with Stark." Steve explains. A couple of hours later Natasha is walking back to the base entrance because Howard got off base housing, having been asked to stay on base to create anything Steve needs. All of a sudden she gets pushed over, and knocked to the ground.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry ma'am, oh hi." Bucky says realising who he knocked over, again.

"Oh, hi, Bucky right?" Natasha asks, despite the fact that she knew.

"Yeah, umm Natalie? We really have to stop meeting like this." Bucky says chuckling.

"No kidding." Natasha says. He looks confused about that, because what dame says that, but he got the gist of what she was saying.

"Hey, um let me make it up to you, can I buy you a drink?" Bucky asks.

"I'm sorry, but I really should be getting back, Howard's probably already thinking that I finally went too far and Philips arrested me." Nat explains.

"Oh so you and Stark are…?" Bucky asks surprised.

"Yeah." Nat responds.

"Ok, well how about you go back tell him you're going out and we go dancing, strictly as friends." Bucky suggests. Nat nods.

"Sure, how about, you give me twenty minutes and we meet here, then we can go wherever." Natasha offers, Bucky smiles and nods so Tasha goes off.

"Hey Howard, I'm going out dancing k?" Nat says when she walks in.

"Who with?" Howard asks.

"Bucky, Steve's friends, he ran into me again so he's trying to make it up to me, I'll see you later." Tash explains before leaving again. Twenty minutes later she is standing in the same spot and Bucky comes round the corner.

"Hey Natalie, you ready?" he asks, Tash puts on her forties lady façade.

"Yeah, so where are we going?" Natasha asks.

"Well, I saw this pub round the corner if you're interested." Bucky asks, Natasha nods. And that's where they go. When they get there they see Steve and the Howling Commandos, though not yet, sitting round a table talking. Bucky and Natasha dance for about an hour before Tash decides to go back because Howard and Natasha were meant to be doing the time machine tonight.

"Thanks for the dance soldier." Tash says after finally convincing Bucky to let her walk out alone because she realises that he needs to be alone at the bar so that Steve can ask him to join the fight. "I'm Back How." Natasha yells out when she gets back.

"How was your night?" Howard asks after kissing her.

"Fun, as of tomorrow Captain America and his team are taking down Hydra!" Natasha says.

"I'm glad. So it's been 15 months since you got here, let's get to work on getting you home. Luckily it being time travel I can get you back whenever after you left, though probably about fifteen minutes after you left there is the best I'll be able to do." Howard explains, Natasha nods and they get to work. Dr Erskine and Howard had explained everything to her when they did it so she was basically a qualified scientist, which means she was actually able to help Howard, making guesses from what she saw of Tony's machine. They work late into the night before eventually falling onto the bed.

The next day Howard and Natasha are in the lab, she had just gone to get coffee when she sees Peggy walk up to Steve while he was making out with some blonde, this she had not heard about before. When they begin to walk off Natasha grabs his arm.

"I hope you don't mind me saying Cap, but you're an idiot." Natasha says, he nods sincerely. She heads back to Howard. Ten minutes later Natasha hears Howard explaining that fondue is just cheese and biscuits, she fights back the urge to hit him again. She gets back to her work when all of a suddenly she hears gunshots. Her hand automatically goes to her concealed weapon, she turns to find Peggy has just shot at Steve.

"Yes, I think it works." She says before walking off, Natasha walks after her.

"Well that was quite the show." Natasha says.

"Natasha, don't bother." Peggy says.

"I'm not here to cheer you up Peg, I'm here to bring you back down to earth. Your jobs are dangerous, there is every possibility that one day neither of you will come back, stop wasting time being an idiot when you know that was the blondes fault." Natasha says before walking back to the lab and back to work.

The next few months brought the usual. Nat and Howard arguing a lot, Bucky and Nat occasionally going dancing, Natasha yelling at Phillips, Phillips yelling at Howard, Howard getting irritated at Nat and the cycle starts again. At least once a week Natasha and Howard go out for dinner to a local pub, though they both miss the Stork club. Then came the mission that Natasha knows kills Bucky. They went dancing the night before and Bucky told her about the mission, that night Natasha went home to Howard and cried. She couldn't save him, too many important things came from his death. She has to live with the fact that she could've saved him but didn't.

"Tash, what's wrong?" Howard asks.

"I can't tell you." She cries. The next morning Natasha hugged Bucky goodbye.

"Good luck Bucky." She said.

"Thanks Nat, have fun with Stark." Bucky says.

"Bucky I know you don't like him." Natasha admits.

"That obvious?" Bucky says sarcastically. "Look, I just think you deserve better and you can do better."

"And you may or may not be right, but either way I don't want better, I just want him." Natasha admits out loud for the first time.

"You're in love with him." Bucky realises.

"Love is for children." Natasha defends.

"Oh Natty, since when aren't you childish?" Bucky says rhetorically. Before leaving with the others.

On the way up he passes Stark. "Never let her go Stark." Bucky tells him then gets in the plane.

"I certainly don't plan too." Howard says quietly to himself before realising that that is exactly what he is doing by sending her home, he realises there is something he needs to do. He goes to a nearby store and picks up the perfect thing for it. That night they receive word that James Bucharean Barnes was KIA.

"You know Natasha, Bucky said something to me before he left." Howard begins when they are at their apartment they're staying in. "He told me to never let you go just before he got into the plane and it got me thinking. I know you think love is for children Natasha but I love you." Howard continues before getting down on one knee and pulling out the box with the ring he picked out earlier in it. "And I know that I want to be married to you before you go back, so with all that in mind, Natasha Romanoff, will you marry me?" Howard asked Natasha.

"Howard, I'm going back to the future soon, it's already going to be difficult to go, and you have to fall in love and marry Maria, otherwise Tony won't be born so he'll never build the machine to bring me back here and we'll cause a paradox." Natasha explains sadly.

"Well, to explain where you went Pegs and I would have to tell people that you died, so than the marriage would legally be over, then it won't affect the future, and besides, I don't care about time, I just know I want you to be my wife." Howard explains.

"Well then, yes, yes I will marry you!" Natasha responds. They got intimate that night for the first time, and they both knew that neither would ever regret it.

The next day Natasha was in the lab at the SSR base when Howard comes running in shouting "Natasha! Natasha?"

"Yeah How." She said appearing behind him, though really she just walked there, and scaring the crap out of him.

"Geez red, you're trying to give me a heart attack? Anyway, I did it. It's built I finished it! I can send you home chérie!" Howard yelled delighted, then a minute later he seemed to realise what that meant and the happy smile disappeared from his face.

"I can't leave yet, I mean I still have to, but something has to happen before I do, one our wedding and two another event." Natasha says, then Peggy enters the lab.

"Natasha, Howard. Steve and I have to leave for a mission in Switzerland we found the last base." She says from a little way across the room as she walks over. The next few moments seem to pass in slow motion for Natasha, she turns around and hears what Peggy said her hair falls back into place after the turn before her face falls, tears start to fill her eyes. She runs out of the lab and to find Steve before Peggy even reaches Howard. When she finds Steve he is getting ready to leave.

"Captain Rogers, there's something I have to say before you leave for this mission." Natasha informs him.

"Yes ma'am?" he asks.

"I just want you to know, that, you will see Peggy again. It will take a long time but you will see her again, you will see me again and you will see Peggy again! I want you to remember that, even if you're about to die, or if you're say in a plane and about to put it in the ice, remember that you're fight isn't over and you will see us again. Good luck!" Natasha says before leaving. Later that day Peggy and Phillips return and go to the communications room hoping to hear from Steve. Howard and I are there as well.

"Well Ms Romanoff this is a surprise, no sarcastic comment or completely out of line angry speech?" Phillips asks.

"No, not today. Because no matter what happens you did everything right today." Natasha says before walking out knowing that Peggy will need privacy soon, Howard leaves with her. Phillips walks out a minute later and informs them that they had got word of Nazi bombs on the way to the city. Half an hour later Peggy walks out and into the room that Phillips, Howard and Natasha are waiting in.

"What did you say to him? He said that what you had said to him was getting him through this." Peggy asks Tasha when she walks in.

"You'll find out in seventy years." Tasha tells her.

"We've gotten word. Hydra is planning an attack on the city, those bombs weren't the only thing and the rest of the attack will get here with in the next two days." Phillips explains.

"You need to go back." Howard says to Natasha quietly.

"No, I will not leave until my last name is Stark!" Natasha says just as quietly.

"Then let's do it. Let's get married now chérie!" Howard says, Natasha nods and they both go off in different directions. They go to a chapel nearby Howard with a plane a block away in case they are too late. Peggy agreed to be Natasha's maid of honour and Jarvis, Howard's best man. The officiate agreed to marry them that day for large sums of money that Howard was more than willing to pay, and so there they were. Howard at the end of the chapel. Peggy walking down the isle in a dress Natasha and her picked up on the way. Jarvis standing next to Howard. Phillips and a few other people in seats. Natasha wishes that Dr Erskine, Bucky and Steve were here, but Bucky and Erskine were dead and Steve was presumed dead. Then music began and the bride stepped into the room.


	6. Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6 – WEDDING BELLS AND BOMBS AWAY

When the music began Natasha began walking down the aisle. (Picture of her dress is the picture for the story). She reached the end of the isle and passed her flowers to Peggy.

"We are gathered here today to witness these two lovers coming together in holy matrimony. If anyone has any reason why these two should not be wed speak now or for ever hold your peace." The priest began. Peggy, Howard and Natasha thinking of a few reasons but none voicing them.

"Then, do you Natasha Romanoff take Howard Stark to be your lawfully wedded husband?" The priest asks.

"I do." She responds without hesitation.

"And do you Howard Stark take Natasha Romanoff to be your lawfully wedded wife?" the priest asks Howard.

"I do." He says without reservation.

"Then by the power…" he begins to say but the bomb siren goes and they begin to hear bombs dropping in the distance. Everyone runs underground.

"Natasha, I have to send you now." Howard says having brought the portable time machine with him.

"Do it now and I'll get there half a mile under rock. Most of these bunkers aren't around anymore, and I already told you I'm not leaving 'till we're married." Natasha says forcefully.

"Excuse me father, can you please finish, if we die I want to have her as my wife." Howard asks the priest desperately, the guy looks terrified but his face brightens at that.

"Of course sir, by the power invested in me by the lord's church I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride!" the priest says and Howard does.

"We've got the plane but getting there will be tricky and the planes that are bombing will fire at us, I should be able to evade but I won't be able to land in America. Anywhere else you can go?" Howard asks.

"Yes, in fact that's better, if Clint stuck to his end of the bargain he should be there. We agreed that if either of us went missing and were finding their own way back we'd wait here. I need you to take me to very specific coordinates over the Pacific Ocean, I just hope that after two years I remembered correctly." Natasha says hoping she's right about where the helicarier is. They make a break for the plane, Phillips and Peggy hot on their heels. Apparently a hydra invasion began, the bombs are Nazi and the Nazi's didn't know that Hydra was invading. Along the way Phillips, Peggy and Howard observe Natasha single handedly take out all of the Hydra guys they come across without a weapon. She's in Black Widow mode.

"Who the hell are you Romanoff?" Phillips demands. Natasha ignores him and instead starts flying the plane as fast as it will go avoiding the bullets they are getting shot with.

"Since when can you fly a plane?" Peggy asks.

"Since I was seven, of course the planes I'm used to are different and more efficient but I've been watching Howard fly them for two years, I picked up a few things." Natasha responds. Howard gets in the co-pilot seat and starts using the planes weapons, it is his plane after all, to fire at the Nazi planes.

"We need to get back to the ground and help out!" Phillips yells.

"We have to get to the co-ordinates so that I can get sent home, then you three can do whatever." Natasha yells back.

"Peggy, can you take over here I have to set the machine up." Howard requests.

"Of course." Peggy says and takes his spot firing at the planes following them.

"What do you three know that I don't?" Phillips demands.

"A lot!" all three reply.

"Okay, no one set foot with in this square." Howard says marking it out with tape. He then starts fiddling with controls.

"Tasha, date?" Howard yell asks.

"13th August 2015." Natasha responds.

"Time? Remember fifteen minutes after you left at least." Howard says after putting in the date.

"Let's go with twenty just to be sure, so 2:43pm." Natasha yells back.

"Ok, how long till we get there?" Howard asks.

"ETA is twenty minutes." Natasha replies.

"ET what now?" Howard asks dumbfounded.

"Estimated time of arrival, ETA." Natasha distractedly replies as they come under fire again. Fifteen minutes later Phillips takes over flying while Howard, Peggy and Natasha are in the back of the plane knowing the timing must be precise or she'll end up in the wrong place and fall to her death in the Pacific Ocean.

"Five minutes." Phillips yells back. The three of them had explained everything to him while flying over.

"Natasha, I love you! and hey. Maybe if Anthony ever perfects the machine you'll be able to visit and go back." Howard offers uselessly.

"Howard you know I can't ever come back. And about Anthony, you were a shit father for whatever reason, so here it is. For one, do better, spend every Sunday no matter what doing things with him that you both enjoy. And quickly now write him a letter I'll deliver it." Natasha says. Howard nods shocked and gets paper and a pencil and begins to quickly write.

"Thanks for everything Peggy, I'll visit you when I get back, so I guess I'll see you in seventy years." Natasha tells Peggy.

"See you then Tasha." Peggy replies, giving her friend a hug.

"Oh and Phillips, You did good." Natasha informs him.

"You should've pretended to be an Agent, you could've helped us win the war." Phillips says.

"You don't need my help for that, believe you me." Natasha says basically telling them they win.

"Alright, here." Howard says handing over the note. "And just so you know, you've more than wiped out the red. Natalia Romanova may be a murderer but Natasha Romanoff is a hero! And a Stark, and my amazing wife. I love you Natasha Stark." Howard tells her.

"I Love you too Howard." Natasha says for the first time.

"You got to go Now." Phillips yells. Natasha leans forwards and kisses Howard one more time before standing in the square tears streaming down her face.

"Good bye." She says, a bright flash of light later and she's gone.

2015

"Hey guys, I'm so sorry Clint this is my fault, if I hadn't have lost it Natasha would still be here." Bruce says having changed back into a human.

"Oh, I have to get something." Stark says before running out of the room returning a few minutes later. They were all in the lab waiting for Natasha to return. He comes back in with a letter in his hand.

"My old man told me to give this to Natasha when she gets back." Stark explains when he comes back in.

"YOU KNEW THIS WOULD HAPPEN?!" Clint screams at him in fury.

"No, not when she left but then all of a sudden it's like I got new memories, I remember my dad ignoring me all my life but now it's like I know that's what happened but I remember him spending every Sunday with me." Stark explains.

"At least we know she made it to Howard, what I'm worried about is how easy it is to just get shot in the street there, it was the war." Steve informs them.

"Sir, Director Fury is requesting the Avengers go to the helicarier immediately." JARVIS tells Tony.

"I wonder what that's about, someone has to stay here in case Natasha comes back." Clint says.

"I'll stay, I probably shouldn't be there this close after the other guy came out." Bruce offers. The others nod and head to the helicarier. When they get there they head to the bridge where they find Fury.

"Sir, you called?" Clint says when they walk in.

"Yes, I needed everyone here to explain the strange and unidentifiable energy spike we registered from the tower? Now where are Banner and Romanoff?" Fury demands sounding pissed off.

"Banner changed so he didn't think it was a good idea to come with us when he was still calming down, Lady Natasha stayed with him in case of incidents." Thor explains knowing they can't tell him the truth until Romanoff either comes back or it becomes clear she's not coming back.

"Oh, and she just offered to do this huh?" Fury asks suspiciously.

"Well no, but we couldn't decide who would stay so we a…" Clint begins to say, then says "Drew straws" at the same time Stark said "Rock paper scissors" and Cap said "Enimeniminymo."

Fury just raised an eye brow at them.

"Well, whoever lost wouldn't accept it so Cap and Thor just kind of looked at each other nodded and then Thor grabbed Cap before flying here. Stark made for the window, I jumped on his back and he flew off leaving Romanoff cursing behind us." Clint said, trying to make it look like he didn't want to admit that. Fury seemed to buy it until agent Hill entered the room.

"Clint that was the worst landing I've ever seen you do in a quin jet!" Hill comments. Clint just kind of closes his eyes in pain before turning to once again face Fury.

"Want to try that one again Barton?" Fury requests.

"Oh fine, Banner lost it Tony built a machine Thor came running in knocked Natasha and she got sent back." Clint yelled.

"Agent Barton, what do you mean sent back?" Fury asks his voice deathly calm.

"He means that we aren't entirely sure but think she got sent back in, well, time sir." Rogers explains. Fury is about to respond when a random agent at a computer yells.

"Sir, I'm picking up the same energy reading as before." He informs them.

"Natasha." The avengers say about to head out the door and back to the tower when the agent yells out again.

"Wait Sir's, it's not in the tower now, it's… here." The agent says. All of a sudden there is a bright light and Natasha Romanoff appears in front of them in a wedding dress and tears streaming down her face.

"Nat?" Clint says. "Is that a wedding dress?" he asks.

She just collapses to her knees, her face wet with tears though they have stopped falling. Clint runs forward and holds her.

"Agent Romanoff explain yourself." Fury says, in his own way showing he cares.

"Stark," Natasha says.

"What?" Tony asks.

"No me, my last name's Stark." Natasha says before looking directly into Tony's eyes and saying, "Oops, I accidently married your father." Everyone goes silent.

"Briefing room, now!" Fury demands. Everyone goes and sits down.

"You're joking right?" Tony asks.

"Well, not accidently, it was on purpose, but I did marry Howard. You're machine works! Um here, he asked me to give you this." Natasha informs Tony while handing over the note.

"This is from him." He says handing over the other note. He opens it and looks but Natasha doesn't. Tony's note reads:

_Anthony,_

_Natasha told me that I'm going to be a horrible father, well I can't promise I won't be. But I can and am now promising to try and do better, every week on Sunday we'll do whatever we like, just the two of us, I'll tell you about Peggy, Natasha, Bucky, Steve and the war. I'll tell you stories of Natasha yelling at Phillips all the time and speaking French in the lab. I'm sorry if I fail you once again but know son that I know I love you and am more proud of you than you can believe. Natasha wouldn't tell me you're big accomplishments, but she told me a few things, I know I couldn't have asked for a better son, my best creation always has and always will be you._

_Also, I know for a fact from when I met her Natasha was no scientist, but she is a great engineer now, I taught her. And though she didn't admit it, she is the only living person who can recreate the super soldier serum. I love you son, you've made me proud!_

_Your loving father,_

_Howard Stark._

_P.S. I know me marrying your friend was not my brightest moment, but I truly loved her, I hope you understand that. Natasha Stark is a truly amazing woman._

"What did the asshole say about me?" Natasha asks.

"Apparently he taught you and you're a great engineer and scientist now." Tony says not mentioning the serum.

"Oh yeah, I actually built some of the machine that changed Steve." Natasha admits.

"You did didn't you, oh I'm remembering it all now, Oh and Bucky told me about the second time you met, I'd like to apologise for him knocking you over, again." Steve says. "Did Peggy tell you what I asked her to over the radio?"

"Yes, I'm glad I could help." Natasha says.

"I meant it, thank you." Steve says.

"What are you two talking about?" Tony asked.

"I told Steve before he went on that last mission that even if he was to be in a plane about to put it in the ice, to remember he would be seeing me and Peggy again." Natasha explains. "Oh, Peggy! Steve do you have the hospitals number?"

"Yeah." Steve says writing it down, she went to get her phone when she realised she never got it back from Howard.

"Why you little shit!" Natasha says. "Can I borrow someone's phone? How never gave mine back."

"How?" Stark comments while handing over his phone.

"Howard." Natasha corrects then calls the hospital, "Hi, may I please speak to Peggy Carter, I'm an old friend. Natasha." Natasha says through the phone

"Hey Pegs. Yeah it's me, yeah, I told you so, yeah. Alright, I'll come by later today ok? Alright see you." She says then hangs up. "Thanks Tony."

"Hey Natasha, does this make you my step mother?" Tony asks as he grabs the phone from Tasha.

"Noooooo, I married him before you were born so no!" Natasha replies.

"Alright Agent Romanoff, start from the beginning, what happened?" Fury requests.

"Yes sir." And that's what she does.


	7. Chapter 7

CHAPTER 7 – A NEW STARK

"Wow, you said all that to Phillips?" Steve asks when Natasha finishes her story.

"My dad said that? Man he got soft with you!" Tony comments in bewilderment.

"The Black Widow everyone, happily married but just couldn't do it the normal way!" Clint says laughing.

"My marriage is better than yours!" Natasha says to him angrily.

"You knew him as your husband for twenty minutes!" Clint replied.

"Beside the point." Tash responds.

"Bird brain your married?" Tony asks.

"Seriously you're friend and co-worker, teammate just married your father and that's your question?" Barton asks incredulously. Natasha took this time to read the letter from Howard.

Chérie,

I know that this must be difficult, and Anthony may be giving you a hard time. But you have to know that I love you still, and always will. I've met Maria, she was actually at our wedding, at least the end of it. She was hidden in the bunker with us when the priest finished. Natasha, Peggy got a wacky idea in her head. She seems to think you were pregnant when you left, I disagree but just in case knowing I can't be there to help, even if you're not go to the vault underneath the mansion we lived in, there's something there for you.

Your loving husband,

Howard

Natasha tried not to cry, but she had changed in the time she was in the forties, and she could no longer control her emotions as well as she could. And so a few stray tears fell down her face before she stopped the rest.

"Romanoff are you okay?" Hill asked noticing she had read the note and had tears in her eyes and rolling down her face, all of which was nothing like the Romanoff she knew.

"Natasha how long exactly were you there?" Hill asks gently.

"Almost two years." Natasha replied, everyone knowing how much a person can change in two years were still surprised. They knew she had been gone a while but they didn't expect that. "Director, may I go see Peggy?" she requests.

"Yes Agent Romanoff but when you get back please head to medical, we'll have more questions but we're heading to the hub so meet us there when you've finished with Agent Carter." Fury replied. Natasha seemed irritated for a second before deciding not to correct him on her name again. She went to the hospital to see Peggy completely forgetting to get changed though she hadn't had a chance yet even if she had remembered.

"Hi my name's Natasha I'm here to see Peggy Carter. I called earlier." Natasha said at the front desk.

"Yes this way please." A Nurse said leading her down a corridor. Natasha hadn't failed to notice she was being more polite than she did two years ago when she was in this time last, she was so used to the forties. "What was your name sorry, it's better if she's reminded before you go in." the nurse explained.

"Natasha Stark." She replied the woman looked at her confused for a second before Natasha realised she must be thinking of Tony, "Not that Stark." Natasha corrected, not actually lying either.

"Oh, of course, I'll just be a second." The nurse said entering the room. "Excuse me Ms Carter, there's a Natasha Stark here to see you." The nurse said.

"Yes I know, she called an hour ago saying she would come around, send her in please." Peggy replied quietly. The nurse was surprised she remembered the phone call. She went out and got Natasha.

"Hey Pegs, wow, you got old." Natasha says in a kidding voice.

"Oh, my dear friend you haven't changed at all. Howard and I were so worried. But based on what you had said we thought I would be the one to see you again. Jarvis told me to say hello to you whenever I saw you next." Peggy said, she was acting strange though and Natasha knew that this wasn't normal for old Peggy either.

"Peggy, what's wrong?" Nat asked timidly.

"What do you mean?" Peggy asks, Natasha just looks at her. Peggy sighs, "You knew." Peggy says quietly.

"Knew what?" Natasha asks confused.

"You knew, you told him something before he left that helped him, which means you knew he was going to die and you let him. You did the same with Bucky and Erskine, and they meant more to you. But you knew I loved Steve, you knew I loved him so much, and you let him go." Peggy said crying but clearly angry. "You let good innocent people die Natasha when you could have saved them. You wanted everything but select things to turn out the same for you, but you going to our time changed everything, you changed a lot of people's lives so why couldn't you change his? You wanted him to be alive now for your sake. But what about mine? You got your happy ending because you decided that could happen, but you played god, and now I'll never get mine. Who are you to decide who lives and who dies? If you know something will happen to someone you save them, that's your job, so why couldn't you save him?" Peggy said losing it. Natasha had a look of absolute horror on her face. She ran out of the room and ran all the way to the mansion of Howard's. She ran to what was her and Howard's room before collapsing on the floor. She cried.

"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry Steve, I'm so sorry Peggy, I'm sorry Bucky and I'm sorry Dr Erskine. I'm sorry Howard, I love you so much, I knew we never should have got together when I had to leave. But no, I wanted something and now everyone has suffered. I'm sorry, I never deserved. You Bucky was wrong, you were the one who could've done better." Natasha yelled through her sobs though getting quieter at the end. All of a sudden someone was hugging her, she collapsed into his arms immediately recognising Clint.

"Hey shh shh, it'll be okay, you're alright. Come on now, everything will be fine." Barton whispered to her over and over again. They stayed like that on the bedroom floor, Natasha crying and the only thing holding her up for falling on the floor completely was Clint's tight grip on her, for an hour before Natasha's cries had subsided almost completely.

"I have to do something, will you come?" Natasha requests.

"Of course, you're partner Nat, I'm always here for you." Clint responds.

"Well, I'm about to show you what Howard once said was a Stark family secret, so you can't tell anyone." Natasha says sternly, Clint nods with a goofy smile on his face that Natasha doesn't see. They go into the living room where Natasha moves the old fraying couch, underneath there was a trap door which she opened with her thumbprint. The two then descend down the stairs into the vault. Inside are a few boxes one of them says 'TASHA OPEN THIS FIRST' which she does.

Inside are several things that Howard had obviously been collecting and waiting for her to be able to get them, Natasha took the box upstairs into the living room before putting the couch back. When she had done that she sat on the couch looking at the box for a moment. All of a sudden the rest of the Avengers, Fury and Hill came into the room.

"Geez Clint, you could have said you'd found her." Banner says having been filled in on the way over, Barton just shakes his head and everyone stops talking. Natasha opens the box before pulling out what looked to be a photo album. Natasha looked through it for a second before putting it on the ground.

"Can I look?" Tony asks, Natasha nods so he picks it up and sits on the ground, everyone switching from looking at the photos to what Natasha is pulling out next. She pulls out a SSR folder, Phillips tried to find out who she was. Natasha's breathing got quicker and heavier when she realises that he did it through the years, so he found out about everything she had done. There was also her phone inside. With a small sticky note on it saying: I made a charger, watch the videos!

The first video is of Phillips in his office having a very heated argument with Peggy.

"_Agent Carter, she's not dead so no." Phillips yelled._

"_Well we have to say something and if you don't go along with it no one will. Think of it this way, you tell the truth and everyone will think you're, what would Natasha say, nuts?" Peggy yells._

"_You know, I never really have and never will care what Ms Romanoff has to say." Phillips yells._

"_Technically Mrs Stark not Ms Romanoff." Stark adds from the side of the room._

"_I don't give a rat's ass Stark, unlike the both of you and Mrs Stark for that matter, I respect authority and lying to my superiors is out of line." Phillips yells effectively ending the argument. Peggy went to walk out but turned around just before she did._

"_Maybe not out of line, maybe you're just not busy kissing their arses." Peggy declared before leaving the room._

"_Stark, if your wife ever comes back, she's under arrest and I will kill her." Phillips says._

"_Yes sir." Howard says pissing himself laughing._

"Peggy used my line." Natasha says, almost everyone was laughing in varying degrees after seeing the video. The next was a video of Howard and Peggy talking to her.

"_Hey chérie, it's 25__th__ of April 1984, congrats you're officially born!" Howard says with a forced smile._

"_Oh Howard, do shut up! We just want to say happy birthday and we're glad you exist!" Peggy says smirking._

"_Oh and you yelled at me when I made fun of her being born as we're talking." Howard says._

"_I'm sorry I just couldn't help myself! In any case we have some news for you, see Howard, being Howard, has a rather advanced plane!" Peggy begins._

"_I would like to preface this by saying I didn't do it on purpose the plane did it automatically!" Howard says as Peggy starts saying things like sure the plane did it._

"_In any case, I shouldn't be the one telling you this! Howard, would you please explain what your plane did to your wife? Ahh, Howard Stark has a wife, I maintain he's perfected mind control and that you didn't say yes willingly!" Peggy says smiling._

"_Says the person talking to a phone to get a message to her best friend who is currently being born! Pfft, anyway, uhh Hi Nat how you been, I'll assume you said fine as that's you're answer regardless of how you actually are!" Howard begins rambling._

"Anyone else getting freaked out about what that plane did to her?" Tony asks receiving several "Shh's" in response.

"_Oh Howard Stark you will tell your wife right now!" Peggy yells at him._

"_My plane ran a full body scan on everyone in the plane. And Natasha you're pregnant! Congratulations. I'm so sorry that I can't be there to help, but the rest of those boxes were stuff for the baby and some money to help you!" Howard says quickly._

"_Daddy, I had a nightmare." A little boy walking into the room says._

"_Anthony, what have I always told you about nightmares?" Howard asks his son squatting down to his height._

"_That the more I let them scare me the more they will come. I know, but daddy can you tell me a story? About Tasha yelling at poopy pants?" A very young Tony Stark asks._

"_Of course, I'll never run out of those stories. How about you wave to Natasha? She'll see you through the phone." Howard tells his son._

"_Hello Tasha, my daddy says you're really pretty and nice! He says I get to meet you one day! I can't wait! Night, night Tasha, I'll see you one day and you can tell me stories like Aunt Peggy does about daddy!" Tony says to the phone._

"_You what now?" Howard asks Peggy._

"_Anyway, congratulations Natasha, I'll see you one day, good bye!" Peggy says._

When the video ends everyone looks to Tony.

"What my dad made her sound really cool, and besides Dad use to say he always meant to ask her to be my god mother but didn't get the chance before she left." Tony defends. Then Clint notices Natasha look down to her stomach and put her hand on it.

"Natasha? Are you okay?" Clint asks her.

"I'm sorry, did you just find out you were pregnant?" She asks sarcastically to Clint. "I have to get out of here, no one touch those boxes." Natasha says before running out of the mansion leaving Clint calling after her. She ran to the hub and into the hanger intending to steal a plane and fly away when she sees a familiar face which she runs to. Bare in mind she's been crying a lot and still hasn't changed out of her wedding dress, so Melinda May's confused face was perfectly warranted.

"Nat, what the hell?" she says.

"I need to get out of here, can I stow aboard?" Natasha asks her old friend.

"Of course." May replied not even thinking before she realised that Coulson was on board, oh well his problem. The two head into the plane closing the cargo bay door as they do before heading to the living room. "Ok now, the dress?" May asks when they sit on the couches. FitzSimmons and Skye walk over to May when she comes in.

"May, who's this? Wow, lady are you alright?" Skye asks not realising who she's talking to.

"That's a very complicated question Agent?" Natasha answers.

"Skye, I'm a consultant, and you are?" the hacker asks.

"Agent Natasha Stark." Nat responds.

"You married Tony?" May asks.

"No I married his father." Natasha replies.

"Stark….. as in STARK?" Skye yells while May asks, "Natasha what do you mean Howard's dead?" but Natasha is no longer listening to them, she is looking up at the man standing on the stairs not having noticed she's there yet. Natasha gets up and walks to the bottom of the stairs.

"Coulson?" Natasha asks not believing her eyes.

"Natasha?!" Coulson says panicked before looking to May as he walks to the bottom of the stairs in front of Nat.

"Coulson, you're alive? I-I-I thought you were dead." Natasha says a fresh round of tears coming to her eyes. "Geez, I really need to get back up to my old level of control. See the thing is Phil that for me you've been dead for three years, not one year." She explains.

"Romanoff explain?" Coulson requests.

"My last name is Stark and I have a sentence that will answer a few of your questions and bring up more, Tony Stark built a time machine which I accidently got sent through." Natasha explains.


	8. Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8 – PEGGY MELINDA STARK

"So let me get this straight, Tony Stark built a time machine which you went back through and then married his father in 1945?" May clarifies after getting them in the air. She had also sent a message to Clint saying she had her.

"Yeah pretty much, I mean I was in the forties for two years before Howard and I got married" Natasha adds.

"Ok and you're running from everyone why?" Coulson asks.

"Because they all saw the same video I did and I just had to get out of there, I was going to steal a plane but then I saw Mels." Tasha explains.

"Wait Mels? May you have friends? Oh that didn't come out right." Skye says clamping her hand over her mouth.

"Yes Skye, I have a few friends, I just don't speak to them much anymore. Back to you know Natasha Romanoff being married! What happened to love is for children?" May asks.

"What's wrong with being a little childish? Clint does it all the time, so does Howard, I gave it a shot." Natasha says a little testily.

"Nat what aren't you telling us?" Coulson asks.

"Oh yeah, and the video I was telling you about, was informing me I'm pregnant, which I was told was impossible but hey. Now about you not telling us you survived?" Natasha asks.

"I didn't survive I was revived, what do you mean you're pregnant?" Coulson says bewildered because he thought the same thing Natasha did, that she was infertile.

"It means Coulson, that my lovely life in the forties is over, the one where a child would have been great, and now I can't go back to how things were because I'm, i-I'm going to be a-a mum." Natasha says saying it out loud for the first time.

"This is ridiculous I'm the fucking Black Widow for god's sake! I can't be a mother?!" Natasha says starting to have a Panic attack.

"Okay, Natasha look at me, copy, what I'm doing ok." Skye says starting to take very deep breaths, and after a few minutes Natasha was ok again.

"Thanks Skye." Tasha says. Skye nods and sits back down.

"Tash, this bus goes on missions it's not safe you're pregnant!" Coulson yells.

"I know that Phil I'm pregnant not a delinquent but please keep in mind that I just lost a good friend and my husband earlier today before this bombshell and I'm falling apart here." Natasha yells back. Startling everyone at how honest she's being especially Grant Ward who was walking around the corner.

"Nat?" Ward says surprised.

"Ward?" Natasha says just as surprised.

"Barton's not here is he?" Ward says looking around hand automatically going to the gun in the holster.

"No, you're safe." Natasha responds.

"What the hell are you wearing?" he asks seriously confused.

"Well it was meant to be my wedding day." Natasha says sadly. Then we start hearing _'ALERT ALERT, Self-Destruct protocols recommended.'_ Everyone was about to freak out when May gets up.

"Sorry, I should probably change that, it's Clint's ring tone." May explains. Coulson laughs. May answers the phone.

"Yes Barton? No….. No… I said no Clint. He wants to talk to you Nat." May says handing over the phone.

"Clint." Natasha says into the phone.

"_Hey Tasha, are you okay? You ran off and everyone, or almost everyone was worried about you." Clint says._

"_I did not say I was not worried I simply did not agree to track Lady Natasha's movements." Thor says in the back ground._

"_Anyway, we want you to come home Natasha, we can help you through this and besides Tony's practically bouncing off the walls in excitement for having a sibling." Clint explains_ and Natasha can't help but grin.

"Alright, I'll come back, but I'm kind of on a plane right now and I don't know when or where we are landing." Natasha says.

"_That's okay, Ironman's going to fly to your co-ordinates so just be ready to open the door."_ Clint explains as Tony calls the suit. Natasha looks to Mel and Coulson.

"Nat this is still classified." Coulson says but May interjects.

"Tell him Tony can come." May says and Coulson looks at her.

"May, he can't know I'm alive." Coulson explains tiredly.

"Well hide in your office then, Natasha needs them Phil, I think that's more important than your precious secret." May says forcefully, Coulson rolls his eyes knowing what this is really about. Twenty minutes later there is knocking on the cargo bay door which scares the crap out of Simmons who was in the lab and didn't know to expect that, but May and Romanoff come running down to open it, Romanoff now in casual clothes she borrowed of May's.

"Natasha, you okay?" Tony asks stepping out of the suit once he was safely inside the bus.

"Yeah, so Tony this is my friend..." Natasha says about to introduce May when all of a sudden he yells.

"Mels! BUSTED! Yes I told you I'd find out eventually!" Tony yells May runs at him and jumps on him he just wraps his arms around her in a big hug.

"Didn't doubt you for a second Tony." May says returning the hug.

"Now that I did not expect." Natasha admits as the three go to the living room.

"Wait so, Nat is that Nat?" Tony asks. May nods. "Then that means that Maria is Hill, Clinton being Clint and Phil being, Oh." Tony says putting pieces together in his head.

"But you called me a week after New York, you said that your friend Phil had almost died but didn't." Tony says. At this point of listening to the conversation Coulson goes for the dramatic approach and slowly walks down the stairs.

"Hello Tony, how's life?" he asks. Tony's mouth just drops.

"Okay, so my friend married my father is younger than me pregnant with my sibling, she's also my god mother and my dead friend Phil isn't dead. Also my Mels is a SHIELD agent. Because I so needed this after the week I've had." Tony says when he comes to his senses.

"What was so bad about this week apart from the before mentioned things?" Natasha asks accidently saying something Howard once said to her making her sound weird. "Sorry." She says.

"Well, JARVIS broke for a day, I lost my favourite suit and Pepper broke up with me, she's moved out." Tony says, everyone goes silent. "Hey wait, when you were back in time did you meet the real Jarvis?" Tony asks.

"Yes he was your father's best man at our wedding. That and the butler of the house I lived in for months. When I first met him I was seriously close to fan girling, back to the other thing though, what happened with Pepper?" Natasha asks carefully. Tony rubs his face with his hands.

"Well, it's probably for the best, I- Well, I really like someone else, and she deserves someone who has his sole attention on her, and I should've but I just couldn't help it." Tony says a small sad smile on his face, but when he mentioned he liked someone there was a small but very real smile on his face.

"Who?" May asks.

"That doesn't matter, point is Pep's gone. As is Jarvis and my dad." Tony says.

"I miss Jarvis." May says.

"I know Mels me too." Tony says, they stay and talk for a bit before Tony fly's Natasha and him back to the tower, Natasha carrying her wedding dress in a dress bag so it wouldn't get ruined.

"Nat, are you ok?" Clint asks the second they land.

"Yeah Clint, I'm okay." She reassures him.

"I'm okay too, you know, just flew into a plane to get her, but yeah I'm fine, please you two continue." Tony says before walking into the tower.

"Well he's been in a mood all, week, I mean I get now but he's been the same for three days." Steve comments.

"Pepper and Tony broke up guys, she's moved out." Natasha explains, everyone gets a horrible feeling because those two were the couple everyone expected to last.

"What happened?" Clint asks.

"Well apparently, Tony likes someone else, and from what I saw, he likes them a hell of a lot. But he wouldn't say who. In any case, Pepper left because Tony liked someone else, he's just trying to deal." Natasha explains trying to give Tony a break. "I'll talk to him, I am his god mother after all." Natasha says making everyone laugh.

"Wait, Natalie, umm Natasha, geez you know that's your fault! Anyway I'll talk to him, the fact that you're his god mother probably won't help at the moment." Steve says before heading off to find Tony.

"You know, after you left we talked to Tony about what mini him said in the video, apparently you were his hero growing up, he and his friend growing up Mels, whoever that is, used to play games, he would be his dad and this Mels would be you and they'd pretend to win the war together." Clint said with a smile on his face.

"Hey Clint, I know who Mels is. I didn't meet her in the past, his father must have met her mother later, and anyway, it's Melinda. Our Mel is his friend Mels." Natasha explains smirking.

"No!" Clint says with a look of utter disbelief.

"Yep, you should have seen it, she literally runs and jumps on him, at first I thought she was really angry but then I realised the two of them were hugging. It was so un-Mel like, I thought that maybe it was her he liked but I'm sure now it's not." Natasha recounts.

"You know you're different now, when you left you were half Natasha half Black Widow, forgive me for mentioning it but you were really just Natalia Romanova with a few friends and a different name, but you really are Natasha Romanoff, or Natasha Stark I should say." Clint says but to his surprise she doesn't get angry at the mention of her old name.

"Thanks Clint, I think." She responds giggling a bit. Clint felt as though he would never get his old partner back, but now he had her, and he was definitely ok with that because she was happier despite everything.

When Steve found Tony he was in the lab arguing with dummy.

"No, really if you keep going the way you are you'll be donated to a community college before you can screw up a smoothie." Tony said to the poor robot.

"Oh dummy, he does like you he's just not great at showing it." Steve says. Steve noticed Tony have a grim looking smirk at his words.

"Funny hearing you saying that at this time." Tony says grimly.

"Is this about the person you like?" Steve asks.

"Tasha told you about that huh?" Tony asks knowing he should've seen that coming, he knew she'd tell Clint but that was okay because Clint wouldn't want to talk to him about it.

"Look, you don't want to say who but I am going to ask you a question that you don't have to answer out loud, but at least tell yourself the truth. Do you love them like you loved Pepper?" Steve asks. After a minute of silence Steve suspects that Tony isn't going to answer out loud, but then he does.

"I don't know Steve, I just know that they mean a lot to me and that I couldn't just forget them like Pepper wanted because unfortunately they are a big part of my life." Tony says, something clicks in Steve's head.

"Tony, I promise no judgement on my part and I won't tell anyone, but is it a man? Because it would explain why you don't want to tell anyone who it is and you never said you liked her, you said you liked them." Steve notes.

"Yes Cap, it's a man ok, I like, really like a dude. And unfortunately given my position and who I am plus the media, that means that I have no choice but to keep my head down my mouth shut and hope to god no one ever finds out, not even Pepper. And not Natasha, because while before she went back it wouldn't have mattered, but she's been my role model and I couldn't handle the rejection from that if she didn't like it." Tony says being unusually honest.

"I wasn't aware that you, liked men. But it doesn't change anything, in case that's what you're worried about, as I said no judgement and I won't tell anyone unless you say otherwise." Steve says, he goes up to his room but can't put it out of his mind so on a notepad he writes down everything he knows about the man Tony likes.

Male

Someone important to Tony

Regularly in his life

Tony likes him

Probably will act weird and avoid him

Then Steve made a list of all the men who could fit that description,

Clint

Bruce

Thor

Fury

Unlikely but possibly Happy

Just to cover all bases Me (Steve)

He then wrote a list from those who Tony has been avoiding or acting strange around.

Thor not exactly avoiding but hardly sees

Fury he avoids him like the plague

Clint ever since the video was shown

Bruce ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Me for the past two weeks he's been avoiding me though he usually does so probably nothing, he was unusually open and sharing earlier.

Once he had done that he hid it so no one would find it and know Tony's secret, then he tried to find out how he would narrow down the list.

"Hey Steve, how'd it go with Tony?" Natasha asks when Steve walks into the living room.

"Good, it went well." Steve answers but only half concentrating on them as he racked his brain for any other little piece of information.

"Ok, do you know who it is because we've been trying to work out who it is but not getting anywhere?" Clint says. Around him by the coffee table in the living room is Thor, Banner, Clint and Romanoff.

"Same, but if Tony wanted us to know he'd tell us, we should just let him tell us in his own time." Steve says awkwardly.

"Alright, what do you know Steve?" Natasha asks.

"Nothing that you need to, I know more than you guys, I'm looking into it, but I beg of you guys let it go, it's not our business." Steve says.

"Ok moving on from that what do we know?" Banner says turning away from Steve and back to the paper.

"Alright, tell me what you know it will help me narrow it down, if I work it out I'll ask Tony if I can tell you ok?" Steve suggests not wanting them to look into it.

"Alright, we know that they must be around Tony a lot for Pepper to move out." Natasha says reading form the list.

"Narrows it down." Steve says going through his list.

"We know Tony likes tall women." Clint says, Steve in his head corrects it to tall people.

"Narrows it down." Steve says now able to cross off Clint from his list.

"We know that He must have known them for a while otherwise the feelings wouldn't impact him as much." Banner adds.

"Narrows it down." Steve says now crossing off Fury.

"Umm he likes smart people but doesn't like being proven wrong so they probably won't have an intelligence level as high as him. But they won't be stupid." Natasha says.

"Narrows it down." Steve says crossing off Banner.

"Umm, he'll never have almost gotten them killed otherwise he wouldn't allow himself to even admit he likes them." Bruce adds knowing his friend.

"Narrows it down." Steve says crossing off happy. "Two names left on my list, give me something else." Steve adds.

"Well, probably someone who makes an attempt to be around or understand him after he grew up with Howard, as in the unaltered past." Natasha says.

"I'll be damned." Steve says crossing off Thor's name, that left one name. That left him.

"You know who it is?" Clint asks.

"Possibly, but there may be people I wouldn't know to think of." Steve adds knowing he has to talk to Tony but deciding to wait for things to settle down for the guy.

"Now the question is who is Clint married to, don't think anyone forgot about Natasha's comment." Steve adds, at that point Tony comes up in the elevator.

"Guys, Natasha was joking." Clint meekly defends.

"Clint, come on." Banner says being more social than usual.

"Yeah bird brain who's the unlucky person." Tony asks as he joins the group around the table purposely sitting away from Steve.

"Her name's…" Natasha begins to say before Clint sticks his hand over her mouth.

"She's just trying to piss me off now, I'm not married guys." Clint argues to no avail.

"Sorry Barton but there is a band around your finger where a ring use to be." Thor points out.

"Well shit." Barton says struggling to keep his hand on Natasha's mouth while she struggles to get free, which isn't working mainly because she is laughing. Finally she gets free.

"Her name's Riley, Riley Barton, she's lovely. He doesn't want to say it because, they are more like best friends than husband and wife, they got married to protect her from something but they aren't together, I enjoy laughing at them because occasionally they have to go out in public as a couple and they are so awkward. It's like kissing your best friend, it's just weird but everyone around you finds it hilarious like in truth or dare." Natasha explains.

"JARVIS." Tony says.

"Searching now sir." JARVIS says, Clint gets a smug expression on his face.

"No results for Riley Barton." JARVIS informs them.

"Ha!" Clint says before walking off.

_**OMG, I am sooooo sorry about the whole chapter seven was chapter 3 thing. it has been fixed and I am again soooo sorry. i may have accidently clicked the wrong document when updating the chapter! Sorry again, i'm an iddiot sometimes ;) please though enjoy!**_

_**~Alyxx**_


	9. Chapter 9

CHAPTER 9 – A STONY CHAPTER

A day later and they are no closer to finding Mrs Riley Barton and Natasha has refused them any more help, she's in regular contact with Mel and Skye having gotten along well with the young hacker. Meanwhile Steve has decided to talk to Tony about his suspicions. He walked into the lab the lights were off for some reason and the only light was blue and eerie from the arc reactor. Steve attempted to turn the lights on but they were broken which was obviously why they were off.

"You know, don't you?" Tony says from his spot working on ironman's arm.

"That depends if I'm right or not." Steve says.

"I get the feeling you are, and don't worry I know you don't feel the same." Tony says.

"Tony, I grew up in the forties when this kind of thing was illegal and almost unheard of, it was not ok, and I wasn't ever given the chance to even know what I thought about it." Steve explains slowly.

"What are you saying?" Tony asks looking at Steve suspiciously.

"I don't know, that's why I'm down here talking to you, I felt crazy in my room talking to myself." Steve explains. He looked at Tony who he notices was watching him.

"Do you think that you might…?" Tony says not wanting to finish the question out loud.

"I don't know Tony, I've never thought about it, this is what I'm saying, I want a chance to think about it but that time isn't fair on you." Steve says very awkwardly.

"Talking isn't doing anything but making everything very awkward." Tony comments sadly.

"Well I don't know what else to do, how did you work it out?" Steve asked.

"I didn't know at first, but when you like someone a lot they are your first everything, first hello in the morning, they just come first. I saw you and Pepper standing in the same room once and couldn't decide who to talk to first, and that's when I knew, because she wasn't automatically my first choice." Tony explains. "How about this, crazy solution for a crazy problem, and hear me out first, I kiss you, then you'll know." Tony says. Everything got very uncomfortable but Steve did agree.

As Tony started to lean in Steve realised he was taking too long and he didn't like it, so he leaned in to, and soon they were kissing. Just lightly first, but when Tony realised Steve wasn't pulling away he deepened it. Which Steve responded to by wrapping his arms around Tony. When they came up for breath Tony looked at him seriously.

"Well?" Tony asked holding his breath. Steve looked at him for a moment, before deciding something. If Tony were in a room with someone he would be his first hello. So he kissed him again.

"What does this mean?" Steve asks when they stop to breathe again.

"Well, if you are comfortable enough, I'd like to think this meant we were dating, but I totally get if you don't want to, however, if you do decide you want to, I don't want to tell anyone. Yet." Tony says having had a lot of time to think about what he wanted.

"I want to be with you Tony, but I agree, I don't think we should tell anyone." Steve responds and Tony grins like mad as does Steve. "Hey Tony, what happened to the lights?" Steve asks.

"Hahaha Well, that's why I'm working on the arm. It was luckily pointed upwards when it randomly started firing, knocked out all the lights before I severed it from the rest of the suit effectively cutting all power to the repulsors." Tony describes.

"Well that's not good." Steve remarks.

"No, it's not. I don't know if I fixed it or not but I'm kind of scared to reattach it before I'm sure, but reattaching it is the only way to find out." Tony explains.

"Well just make sure it's aimed upwards again so it doesn't kill us." Steve suggests which is what Tony does. Unfortunately it wasn't fixed and it fired upwards again bringing down a bit of the roof before Tony could shut it off.

"Hey, Cap, whose room is that?" Tony asks pretty sure he knows but wanting to be sure.

"Barton's." Steve confirms and they both run before he goes back to his room, they ran up the stairs and burst into the living room before locking the door, both laughing like mad but looking terrified and out of breath.

"What the hell happened to you two?" Banner asks.

"STARK!" they hear Clint yell.

"Roof?" Steve asks looking at him.

"Roof." Tony agrees and they take the elevator.

"Where is he?" Clint asks when he gets to the living room.

"Where's who?" Banner asks innocently.

"Stark." Clint replies.

"I don't know." Banner responds convincingly before Natasha who was next to Bruce suddenly gets up holding her stomach and mouth and runs to the bathroom making Clint follow her.

"JARVIS please inform Stark and Cap that it's safe to come back down." Banner says knowing that Clint is too focused on helping Natasha. A few minutes later they emerge from the elevator in deep conversation.

"Well, yes but that doesn't mean she knows anything about the technology." Stark replies to an unheard question.

"Well I'm just saying, she helped make me a super soldier she might be able to help your arm." Steve defends.

"Yes well, if anyone else can I suppose it's her, I'll ask, Oh Bruce hey have you seen Tasha?" Stark asks.

"Bathroom throwing up last I knew but far warning Clint's in there." Banner replies.

"Worth it." Stark and Steve say at the same time. So Stark goes to enlist the help of Natasha while Steve sits down on the couch next to Bruce.

"Well, I don't know what you did, but Tony seems happier than I've ever seen him, so I reckon you convinced him to talk to 'her' whoever she is when you worked it out. I'm glad you did." Bruce says. Steve smiles. Then Tony, Clint and Natasha walk back in.

"Hey Natalie, oh shoot, Natasha. How are you?" Steve says still not use to calling her Natasha even though really it's all he ever called her (My version of time travel huh).

"I've been better. Alright, Tony says you guys need help with something." Natasha says.

"Yes you said that Howard taught you a few things, well the suits arms broke the ceiling and we need your help fixing it." Steve explains.

"Yeah, that ceiling was my floor." Clint says angrily.

"Steve its Tony's suit where do you fit into this?" Natasha asks tiredly and clearly confused.

"I was in the room and it was my suggestion to make it point up." Steve explains.

"So it's your fault my floors broken." Clint states coldly.

"No, technically it's my floor I'll get it fixed it's also my fault because I'm the one that was supposed to know what I was doing." Tony points out not wanting Steve to take the blame.

"Tony Stark accepting the blame, now there's a surprise." Says a familiar voice from behind them all. They all turn around to see Pepper Potts standing there in her usual suited up look.

"Pepper, hi." Tony says surprised to see her.

"Hey everyone, I'm sorry for bursting in, I just forgot one if my jackets and I need it for a job interview." She explains, "Do you mind if I go get it?" Pepper asks.

"No not at all." Tony says.

"I'll help you look." Clint said to make the situation more comfortable. The two then leave.

"So, you feel well enough to help with the suit?" Steve asks Natasha.

"Yeah, the nausea passed." Natasha says reassuringly. She began feeling pregnancy symptoms that morning and has not been happy about it.

"Alright let's go take a look." Tony says and the three head down to the lab.

"Geez, what did the poor roof ever do to you?" Natasha asks sarcastically.

"Haha, meanwhile, the arm?" Tony responded. She looks at it and begins to tinker with things surprising Tony with her level of understanding. "So, I've been waiting for the right people to be alone in a room before I mention this but there was something my dad wrote in that note." Tony begins.

"Yes it's true." Natasha says, "I know how to make the serum and the machine, I alone can make another super soldier, but mention it to anyone else Anthony and I will kill you, the SSR were good people using you and what other soldiers they should have had for the right reasons. SHIELD is different, I don't know for sure what the soldiers would be used for so I'm not making it." Natasha says in a ranting tone having been expecting this for a while.

"I wasn't going to ask you to, I simply wanted to confirm that you did. And suggest that you do build the device hide it in the vault at the mansion along with the serum, I've had suspicions for a while that something big is about to go down and SHIELD can't be trusted, I don't know why, I just know. And if something does happen with Steve and my help if the time came we could turn you into a super soldier, and that would be very helpful." Tony suggests.

"I think you're right Tony, something is happening in SHIELD I'm sure of it, I mentioned it to Clint and he thought I was crazy. I'll do it, but I can't do it alone, I need both your help, especially when I start getting bigger." Natasha says.

"I thought I was crazy, I spoke to Thor about it, he didn't think anything was happening though, how is it that three people here who look at things very differently noticed it but no one else did?" Steve asks.

"And how did those three end up being the people in the room when one of them brought it up?" Tony questions.

"I don't know, I can't believe I'm about to say this but there are only two people outside of this room I trust and who might be able to help us." Natasha says. "And neither of them are Avengers." She adds grimly.

"That hacker on the plane, I don't know what it is but I trust her." Tony says. Natasha nods confirming that she was one of them.

"The other will come as a shock to you Cap, Coulson's alive. I think whatever happened, happened after New York. While Tony was battling the mandarin, and Steve you and I were off the radar getting information for a mission, even SHIELD didn't know exactly where we were. Coulson was dead at the time and Skye hadn't joined SHIELD." Tasha explains.

"I agree with Natalie, Arghh why the fake name I ask you, WHY, I agree with Natasha." Steve says causing the other two to giggle.

"Look, whatever is happening we can't tell anyone outside of this room about our concerns or that we had this conversation, only when we're alone." Natasha says.

"What excuse do the three of us have to ever be alone except for right now?" Tony asks. Everyone stopped to think for a moment.

"Well, Tony you and I in the lab makes sense after my trip through time made me practically an engineer. But Steve I don't know." Natasha admits regretfully. Steve and Tony exchange a look, "Why do I get the feeling that you two have a reason?"

"Because we do, if someone gets suspicious we can use that to explain." Steve suggests and Tony nods.

"Oh my gosh, I'm happy for you two, oh that's why you were in the lab earlier." Natasha says while hugging the two men.

"How, I don't want to know." Steve admits. They hear a door open and close above them, they realise Clint just walked into the room above and they heard the door through the hole. Very quietly Natasha gets out a writing pad and writes.

_Forgot about him, not safe to talk, from now on, we talk in the vault about these things. If you find anything somehow get the letter V to the other two of us and we know to head there._

She writes, the others nod.

"Ok, your arm should work now." Natasha says having stopped fiddling. "Barton I suggest you move just in case." Nat yells up through the hole.

"Thanks for the warning." Clint says and they see him leave his room.

"You don't even trust him anymore do you?" Steve questions Natasha very quietly while Tony connects the arm.

"I trust him with my life, but not with this no. and certainly not now when I'm vulnerable." Natasha says just as quietly putting her hand on her stomach.

"Have you seen a doctor to get tests run yet?" Tony asks noticing the movement. "Because the mini Stark has to be healthy otherwise I will be sad, I want my sibling to be happy and healthy." Tony admits.

"No, I haven't I'm worried about what affects the time travel may have had on it so I don't want to go to a normal doctor. I was planning on going to Bruce but then we had that conversation." Natasha explains. Tony connects the arm and aims it up, it doesn't fire.

"Oh thank god. Thanks Tasha." Tony says.

"Anytime." She says walking out to leave the other two alone.


	10. Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10 – SECRET MEETINGS AND SEVERE TRUST ISSUES

Two months later, Natasha has a very small bump now that she has been wearing baggy clothing to hide, she has yet to go to a doctor for tests or scans but with the help of Tony and Steve she was able to talk them through how to do it, she went undercover as a midwife once and she remembers what to do. Today is the day the three decided to bring Coulson and Skye into the fold of their suspicions. They believe that if the other two agree then they are trustworthy otherwise they will blow them off. So it was decided that only one of them would go, and the one with the best excuse to be a little vague in the brain to cover if they aren't trustworthy. Natasha was going in and if it didn't work out she had the excuse of pregnancy brain. And so she was in central park waiting for Skye and Coulson to arrive, she had sent them both a message to meet her there and that she had sent the same to the other one so they should be arriving together. And just as she thought, Lola parked a little way off and the two made their way over.

"Hey Natasha, what's with the creepy meeting?" Skye asks when they get over.

"I need you two to trust me and hand over your ear pieces along with any tracking devices, I'm going to hide them behind the leg of this park bench and then we are going to go for a walk around central park." Natasha requests. They both look hesitant but they trust her. When they've walked away from the bench a bit Coulson speaks up.

"Alright, Stark what's this about?" He asks Natasha making her smile, he and Skye were two of only few who actually called her by her name.

"I believe something's happening in SHIELD and I don't know who to trust at the tower, can I trust you two?" Natasha asks.

"I knew it, I told robot something was happening but he didn't believe me, told me I was just a rookie and probably just didn't understand the protocol." Skye says bitterly. That was one Natasha could trust.

"I don't know why but you can trust Cap and Stark, I just know it and I think you two are right. I haven't mentioned it to anyone, but unlike the two of you, I have a reason to." Coulson says.

"I know I can trust them, I wanted to know if I can trust you, we are actually on our way to meet them now." Natasha explains. "Now what happened?" she asks.

"I've trusted May since the day I met her, like you and Clint, but I don't anymore, and I think it's the same with you and Clint. I trust her with my life but I didn't trust her enough to tell her my suspicions. I saw her talking on the com on the wall. But at the time everyone was playing that stupid video game." Coulson says.

"Simmons was doing the same thing but I figured she was talking to you or something, only when I asked she acted like she didn't know what I was talking about." Skye says. At this point they reach the mansion and the three head down into the vault.

"We're coming down." Natasha yells out giving them warning.

"Yeah, we won't shoot you." Tony says covering the fact that they were making out. Natasha smirks at how convincing that sounded.

"So here's the deal, after New York the people in this room had nothing to do with SHIELD at the same time, Steve and I were off the radar, Tony was dealing with the mandarin, Coulson was dead and Skye wasn't apart of SHIELD yet. Does anyone know anyone else who didn't have anything to do with SHIELD at the same time?" Natasha asks. Everyone thinks for a moment.

"Fury, I've found some information out about my resurrection, and Fury wasn't around SHIELD at the time. He was with me completely separated and isolated. But I don't think we should bring him in just yet, simply because he's the director." Coulson says everyone nods.

"Alright, well now that we know we can trust you we can explain what we are doing." Steve says.

"I know how to recreate the super soldier serum and the machine. I'm going to build it and if something happens I'll transform myself into a super soldier, but if something happens while I'm still pregnant someone else has to, and I think it should be Skye, she's still in training and she's relatively tall, if she gets bigger the only people who will notice are on the bus." Natasha explains.

"And we have a few excuses we can use for any weirdness for me, AC we should tell them." Skye says and he nods, "I'm an 084, and if it wasn't for alien blood that was injected into me a few months ago I would be dead." Skye informs them. Everyone in the room looks shocked until Tony bursts out laughing.

"Sorry it's just why does this shock us, we've got me who has an arc reactor in my chest, a dead guy who was resurrected, super soldier over here who survived seventy years in the ice, and the girl who went back in time got pregnant and then came back after marrying my father." Tony says.

"He has a point." Coulson says.

"We need an excuse for some combination of us to meet face to face, everyone buddy up with someone who doesn't live with you." Steve says everyone looks confused. "I have an idea, Natasha I think you should every few weeks move from staying on the bus to at the tower, with everything happening it would make sense you want to spend time with your best friend but in your condition you can't not be in contact with the tower so it makes sense, then any information that someone collects we spread it around the group through Natasha and the five of us never have to meet up at the same time unless something happens. And if for whatever reason Natasha can't be give the other the info you give it to your buddy, just make it look like you happen to be in the same place and it can get spread round the group one at a time." Steve explains.

"I agree, but how am I going to build the machine from on the plane?" Natasha asks.

"You don't, when they are on missions use the lab to create the serum, and when you're here build the machine, then they both get finished around the same time." Tony suggests.

"Alright, everyone understand?" Skye asks everyone nods.

"Alright, my partner has to be Tony, officially Steve you don't know I'm alive." Coulson says and Steve nods.

"Well then ma'am, I guess we're partners for communication." Steve says to Skye who nods.

"Alright and in an emergency somehow get the letter V to everyone in the group and we all know to come here to the vault. I need your fingerprints so that the two of you can open the vault and yours too Steve." Tony informs them everyone nods.

"Alright, I have to go, I'm meeting Clint in twenty minutes, you guys remember where your tech is?" Tasha asks Skye and Coulson, they both nod. She nods and leaves. Once Tony had their thumb prints Skye and Coulson left walking back to get their earpieces.

"I thought I was the only one seeing everything odd, now there are five of us, I'm glad they decided to bring us in." Skye comments.

"Me too, I just hope there are enough of us to do whatever we have to, especially considering Tasha's condition. Alright, no more talking once the coms and trackers are back on." Coulson says and puts them back on as does Skye before heading back to the bus.

"Hey, where have you two been?" Ward asks when Coulson and Skye get back to the bus.

"Skye hacked the hub." Coulson says.

"I said I was sorry, I don't see why Fury felt the need to yell at me face to face instead of over video conference." Skye says going along with it as they had neglected to come up with a cover story, they didn't know they'd need one when they left.

"So you could fix everything." Coulson said exasperatedly.

"Well, your firewalls should be better if you don't want someone to hack in, and besides it's not my fault I wasn't allowed the information I needed." Skye said raising her voice for effect.

"What information was that?" Ward asked so Coulson jumps in pretending not to have heard him so it was more believable.

"Skye I told you I would look into your parents." Coulson said as everyone on board the bus now knew of the redacted SHIELD file, just only he, Skye and May know what it says.

"Yes, I also told you that didn't mean I would stop trying." Skye says storming away to her bunk. So that they wouldn't overdo it.

"Skye!" Coulson yelled after her, but she knew to keep going, May walked down to the cargo bay as Ward slowly back away into the lab where FitzSimmons were observing the fight.

"What happened Phil?" May asks having heard all the fight but wanting details.

"She hacked into the hub's systems to look into her parents to see if there was anything on her besides that file, Fury wasn't impressed." Coulson explained to May, she seemed happy with the answer so he retreated to his office.

Meanwhile Clint and Natasha were doing one thing that they both hate. Shopping. Natasha realised she was very soon going to need maternity clothing which she was not happy about so Clint came with her to the shop so he could cheer her up.

"On the other hand it means you won't have to wear hoodies anymore when it's hot, you'll have short sleeved things that fit." Clint says to try and make her smile, it didn't work.

"Don't take it personally, pregnant women are always hardest on the fathers." This random guy walking past said having heard the conversation and had the same one with his wife.

"I'm not even the father, I'm her best friend. But I guess I'm the closest thing, the father died." Clint says realising that he's probably Natasha's closest male support at the moment since Howard's dead, though Tony is doing anything and everything he can to help, he gets the sense that it's for his sibling not Natasha.

"Oh, poor woman, look, it's not my business, but with Kylie, my wife, she has a three year old son, his father died. I was her best friend before that, women sometimes have to raise the kid on their own, just make sure your friend knows that she's not and that your there." The guys says.

"Thanks man." Clint says.

"I'm Jason by the way, but most people call me Jase." Jason informs Clint.

"I'm Clint, nice to meet ya." Clint says.

"Yeah you too, hey listen those two seem to be getting along and helping each other, want to go grab a coffee while they're distracted?" Jase asks.

"God yes." Clint says and they both leave, leaving Kylie and Natasha looking at maternity wear.

"So is this your first baby?" Kylie asks Natasha.

"Yes it is, what about you, your first?" Natasha asks.

"No I've got a three year old at home, Brandon, he's such a sweetie. Oh and Jase and your man seem to have wondered off somewhere together." Kylie noted.

"Oh, he's not my man. He's my best friend." Natasha said.

"Oh, I'm so sorry for your loss." Kylie says and Natasha looks at her surprised.

"How did you know?" Natasha asks.

"Oh sweetie, I know that look, hell I've said that sentence, Jase was just my friend when Brandon was born. The father died before Brandon was born so I named him after him, Jase was there to remind me that I wasn't alone, then one day I realised that I really wasn't and it was all thanks to him. The fact that he's taken you maternity clothes shopping just proves that he'll be there for you." Kylie tells Nat.

"Thanks Kylie, it's just been really hard since Howard died, I didn't even know I was pregnant until he was gone." Natasha explains and Kylie rubs her back in sympathy knowing how she feels.

"Hey you know, if it ever gets too much you can come and hang at our place I've found that even if you double the amount of kids to two, with two parents it still helps relieve stress, and it'd be kind of nice for me and Brandon to have friends in the same situation, Jase two with your friend." Kylie added.

"Clint, his name's Clint. And I'd like that." Natasha replies surprising herself with how easy social interaction with normal people is compared to before she met Howard.

"Awesome, well here's my number." Kylie says writing down a number on a piece of paper and handing it to Natasha.

"Thanks, and here's mine, I don't have a home phone, but it's my mobile." Natasha says handing her the number for her civilian phone. When she notices Clint and Jase walking back over.

"Hey Clint, this is Kylie, Kylie meet my friend Clint." Natasha introduces.

"Pleasure to meet you." Kylie says.

"Yeah you too, um Natasha Jase, Jase, meet Natasha." Clint says and they shake hands. "Did you find anything you like?" Clint asks Natasha she nods.

"Alright, well we should get going, I'll call you." Kylie promises.

"See you round." Natasha says before they go to the counter.

"Natasha, are you making friends and exchanging phone numbers with normal people?" Clint asks in a teasing tone.

"As a matter of fact yes, this kid will need normal friends and I think I do too. You and Jase seem to get along well." Natasha observes.

"Yeah, he's pretty cool, and it's nice to talk about something other than mission tactics and fancy science shit with people. So did Stark's mystery crush, mystery get solved?" Clint asks just before they reach the counter.

"Yes actually, Tony spoke to the person and they are now in a good relationship, he's happy. That's all I ever wanted for my godson." Natasha says with a smile, really flattered that Howard wanted that.

"You're really milking that cow huh? I notice Tony's been calling you Tasha since you got back and we saw that video, he did the same on the video so I assume it's what he called you growing up, I think it's sweet he's decided to now." Clint mentions.

"Yeah, I'm glad he doesn't just think of me as his father's ex-wife or his father's new wife. Or his friend that married his father. We've gotten closer and I'm really glad." Natasha admits.

"I'm glad you're glad." Clint whispers in her ear before getting in the car.


	11. Chapter 11

CHAPTER 11- A VERY MYSTERIOUS MYSTERY.

Three months later Natasha is five months pregnant and really showing by now. She's caught up for coffee with Kylie twice in that time, one of which Jase and Clint attended. Currently she's staying in the bus and working on the serum in the lab while everyone but Skye who agreed to stay behind with Natasha is on a mission. Meanwhile back at the tower Steve and Tony are in the lab as Tony attempts to explain what the arc reactor does when Bruce enters the room.

"No because you see it's stopping the shrapnel from reaching my heart." Tony says again.

"Yes, but is it in the shrapnel's way or something?" Steve asks.

"What no it's like a magnetic pull, only pushing the magnets away." Tony explains.

"Well wouldn't that do more damage to you by them constantly pushing through your chest away from the magnet?" Steve asks clueless. Bruce comes up to help.

"Steve, imagine there is a bomb ok, the arc reactor is the bomb and the shrapnel is the people, the people move away from the bomb to a minimum safe distance, usually they still feel the shock wave but because they are far enough back it's not enough to push them away anymore." Bruce explains.

"So they are far enough away that the magnetic field is weaker and can't push them away anymore they just can't get closer either." Tony says.

"Oh, ok I get it. Thanks Bruce." Steve says happily.

"Yes thankyou Bruce." Tony says over dramatically as if he'd just saved his life. To which Steve rolls his eyes.

"Why were you trying to explain the arc reactor to Steve?" Bruce asks Tony.

"He asked. I think he's really bored." Tony explains his theories.

"He's right here." Steve says as Clint walks in the lab on his phone.

"Hey why is everyone in here and where's Natasha?" Clint asks.

"Didn't she tell you? Natasha is staying with Mels for two weeks." Tony explains.

"And we are here explaining complicated pieces of technology for Steve." Bruce explains, Clint just looks to Steve who waves.

"Yeah, turns out she's staying with a friend and didn't tell me," Clint says into the phone. "Yeah, that'd be great, I'm sure Kylie will love us for that. Ok see you then." Clint says hanging up the phone.

"Who was that and who's Kylie?" Bruce asks.

"That was my friend Jase and Kylie is Jase's wife and Natasha's friend, they are both at about the same stage in their pregnancies. Jase and I are going to take Kylie's son Brandon out to a movie tomorrow to give her a break." Clint explains.

"Since when do you guys have normal civilian friends?" Bruce asks confused.

"Since three months ago." Clint replied.

"Yeah, Natasha mentioned Kylie, apparently they talk about you and Jase a lot." Tony says and Clint rolls his eyes.

"Ok, so I get the arc reactor, what about the suit, how do you control that because not every time you raise your hand does the repulsors fire?" Steve asks.

"Right and with that I leave you too it, I'm ordering pizza anyone want anything?" Clint asks and all four respond at the same time including Clint in a singsong voice 'The usual'. "Why do I ask?"

"I think you enjoy us doing that because it makes you feel like you're a part of something and stop looking at me like that Clint, I'm not going to tell you." Tony says frustrated.

"Oh come on, you've been dating for four months, when are you going to introduce us?" Clint asks.

"Who says you don't know them already?" Tony says to screw with Clint, Bruce looks up, his brain screwed up from that comment as well, and Steve is just trying not to laugh because it's true. After dinner that night Tony follows Steve to his room.

"That was hilarious." Steve commented finally letting out the laugh he'd been holding in.

"I know right, I've been waiting four months for the perfect time to say that!" Tony says laughing as well.

"Thanks for earlier you know explaining all that stuff to me." Steve says to his boyfriend.

"Anytime, but I am curious, why all of a sudden do you want all the science things explained, you used to purposely avoid it." Tony asks curiously.

"Well, it's just that, when we were all working out who you had a crush on, one of the things that narrowed it down was that you don't like being proven wrong so they wouldn't be smarter than you but you didn't like stupid people." Steve explains.

"And so you put yourself through all that so I wouldn't get bored and dump you?" Stark asks a smile on his face. Steve just looks down and nods. "Steve, I'll admit, you aren't the smartest person around, but I knew that when I first started liking you, it doesn't change anything. I love you for you Steve not your brain." Tony reassures Steve.

"You love me?" Steve asks.

"That's the first time either of us has said that out loud isn't it?" Stark asks.

"Yeah, but for the record I love you too." Steve says, Tony smiles and leans over and kisses Steve, Steve wraps his arms around Tony and deepens the kiss.

"Oh, Steve." Stark moans tangling his hands in Steve's hair. Steve pushed him against the wall making another moan escape Tony's mouth

"Tony." Steve moaned when Tony started undoing Steve's belt but never breaking the kiss. All of a suddenly the elevator dings and Clint walks onto the floor.

"Hey Steve, did Natasha say why she left?" Clint asks before looking up and seeing Tony and Steve. "Oh god, I am so sorry, I'll just go." He says covering his eyes and backing back into the elevator.

"Well, that's one way for people to find out." Tony says tucking his shirt back is.

"Yeah, not really what I was planning though." Steve said doing his belt back up and flattening his hair before the two went to the kitchen in search of Clint. They find him in the kitchen as they suspected.

"Hey Clint." Steve says walking into the kitchen.

"Hey guys, oh my god, I am soo sorry, I didn't know that Tony was down there and." Clint starts to rant.

"Clint it's okay, you couldn't have known." Steve assures him.

"I'm still really sorry, and scarred, I won't ever get that image out of my head." Clint complains and the three laugh albeit a little awkwardly. "Anyway, I was just wondering if Natasha told you why she was going." Clint says.

"Uhh no, she didn't tell me she was going, I only knew because Tony told me." Steve clarified making Clint smirk.

"Oh so that's what they call it these days." Clint says and Tony rolls his eyes.

"She said she really needed Mels, said that she needed a female friend who knew everything, Kylie was great with pregnancy stuff and to have a bit of a normal life but with SHIELD and other work or time related stuff she needed Mels." Tony explains. "Why don't you call her?"

"Well that's why I wanted to know why she left, just to know if she would be okay with me calling." Clint explained. "Anyway, I'm turning in, have a good night." Clint said winking before walking out.

"We nearly, you know. I just want you to remember that I'm still a virgin." Steve says in the elevator ride on the way back to Steve's room.

"Steve, if you're not ready we can wait." Tony says reassuringly.

"No it's not that it's just that sometimes I think you forget that. I'm still just a skinny little dude from Brooklyn in the forties I've never had an intimate relationship and never with a man for sure." Steve replied.

"Steve, you're not that guy from Brooklyn anymore, you know how an arc reactor works you're Captain America, and you just used the word dude." Tony says, "You've changed but that doesn't mean I've forgotten where you came from."

"I'm ready Tony." Steve says.

"Are you sure, because you can't get it back when it's gone?" Tony reminds him needing him to be sure.

"Yeah, I'm sure." Steve says moving closer to Tony. Tony closes the gap and kisses Steve again. Steve untucks Tony's shirt and slowly unbuttons it. As Tony tangles Steve's hair in his hand again, he then undoes Steve's belt. Steve moans "Oh Tony." And they deepen the kiss. This time Tony pushes Steve up against the wall. Steve pushes off the wall and onto the bed Tony landing underneath him.

"Steve." Tony moaned.

3:00 am.

Barton whose room was below them was still awake hearing creaking and moans all night. "This is going to be a long night." He said to himself.

The next morning Clint, Banner, Thor and Sam Wilson who came earlier to see Steve are in the kitchen when Steve walks in looking dishevelled.

"Steve, what the hell happened to you?" Bruce asks making Clint smirk like crazy, not that anyone noticed.

"Oh just, didn't sleep much last night." Steve explains.

"Yeah, you know I heard you tossing and turning all night. Like every time you found a good position a better one came along." Clint says. Steve glares at him, but at that point everyone looks to Tony who was coming out of the elevator in his usual suit because he had to go out today.

"You slept with her, and we still haven't met her." Clint says in a tut, tut voice.

"Tell you what, I'll describe them for you. Taller than you, better looking than you and from things I've heard from Natasha about you, their way better in the sack." Tony says.

"Oooooh." Said a voice from the elevator. Steve and Tony turn around to see Skye coming out of the elevator.

"Who are you?" Clint asks.

"Hey Skye looking good." Tony says weirdly resulting in Steve whacking him over the head.

"Skye, what can we do for you?" Steve asks.

"Oh I'm just helping Tash bring her bag up, she was having trouble getting out of the car so May's helping her while I brought the bag up." Skye says holding up a bag.

"Ohh, Mels is here." Tony asks excitedly.

"Yes Tony, she's on her way up with Tash." Skye confirmed as Steve took Tasha's bag.

"Guys, who is this?" Clint asked again.

"Hawk meet Skye, Skye meet Hawk." Tony says. Then the elevator dings and Natasha and Melinda walk out.

"Mels!" Tony yells excitedly as May rushes over and again jumps on him and hugs him. "I've missed you so much." He says.

"Missed you too Tony." She responds.

"Clint." May says as a greeting.

"Hey Linda" Clint says returning the greeting.

"Geez, missed you guys too." Natasha says.

"Of course we missed you Tasha. How's my sibling?" Tony asks putting his hand on Natasha's swollen Belly after hugging her.

"Kicking my kidney at the moment." Natasha says. "Thanks Steve, thanks Skye." Natasha says seeing her bag in Steve's hand.

"We should be getting back or Ward will mess with the plane." May says reluctantly letting go of Tony who had started hugging her again.

"Ward? He's on that plane Natasha's been staying on. You Tony did not mention that." Clint says sending a pointed look his way.

"Clint, let it go it was an accident." Natasha says.

"How do you accidently sleep with someone's girlfriend?" Clint asks.

"I was talking about the time he shot you, but sleeping with her was easier than it usually would have been because she's a slut." Natasha says.

"She was not." Clint defends her.

"Even Riley agrees and she's the least judgemental person in the world." Natasha says. At this point May and Skye have slowly snuck back into the elevator and away.

"Well, I'll be in the lab." Bruce says after an intense awkward silence staring match between Natasha and Clint.

"Yeah me too." Tony says.

"Run?" Steve asks Sam.

"Sure." He responds.

"I must leave for Asgard, I will see you all at a later date." Thor said before taking off out the window.

"So Tony and Steve slept together." Clint says, "Why didn't you tell me they were together?"

"It wasn't my place to." Natasha explains. "I got to ask Tony something, I'll see you later." She then goes to the lab hoping to find Tony, unfortunately he isn't there, she assumes he's gone to the bathroom as only Bruce is in there. So she goes to Tony's desk and rearranges his paperwork into a V shape but it looks like he just got bored. Before using a program Tony put on her phone and sending it to Steve's, his display will go black and a white V will flash on it. She then heads to the mansion and into the vault. Fifteen minutes later Steve comes in looking like he ran the whole way, which he probably did. Three minutes after that Tony came in, in a huff.

"Sorry, would've been here sooner but Banner can be nosy and I didn't want to draw suspicion." Tony explains.

"Who sent the V?" Steve asked.

"I did, I can't make the serum. There is a certain chemical I need and the only place you can get it is Germany 1943-1949 then production of it stopped, I can't make it from scratch without drawing suspicion." Natasha explains.

"You want to go back in time again to get some." Tony realises. "With my little sibling? No way it's too dangerous, someone else will go. Uh Steve can't, you can't I can't because I have to send the person back and bring them forward again, I've perfected the machine. So Coulson or Skye? It can't be Coulson, he's leader of the team they know his every movement. Skye has to go." Tony says explaining his reasoning.

"She too young, she can't speak German and she's not going, because I am. Look, your little sister will be fine, she was when I came back here to begin with she'll be fine again." Natasha says reassuringly.

"Sister?" Tony asks wide eyed.

"I don't know for sure but I believe so." Tasha says.

"Alright I guess you're going back again." Tony remarks.


	12. Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12 - THE TIME TRAVELLOR'S TALE

And so the next day Steve stayed at the tower distracting everyone while Natasha and Tony were in the lab with the time machine.

"You know, you're father made a portable one of those, I can make you one if you want?" Natasha offers.

"He what?! No that's fine, now I have to do it. Just put this on." Tony says handing her a bracelet type thing, looked a bit like a watch but with a bunch of numbers on it like a phone.

"Alright, when you're ready to come home, just type in the date and time you want to return to and press send, this machine will beep and I'll bring you back, just be in the same spot you land in, it'll be the same place in New York that you landed last time." Tony informs her.

"Alright." Natasha says.

"Good luck Tasha." Tony says before sending her back, a bright flash of light later and she was gone again, he sat down in front of the machine and waited for it to beep. Twenty minutes later there was a beeping and Tony pressed a few buttons to bring her back, a flash of light later and she's there but she's not alone. She's also lying on the ground and was obviously a few months more pregnant.

"Tony, I think you were right Skye should've gone." Natasha says before her eyes scrunched closed in pain.

"What's happening, and who's this?" Tony asks.

"She's in labour, and hi you're Tony right, Howard Stark, nice to meet you I've heard a lot about you, sorry if I end up being a dick too you, I've yet to meet your mother anyway so Natasha here was about to go back when she collapsed in a contraction so I pressed the buttons for her and held her, she needs a doctor." Howard says.

"She hasn't seen a doctor throughout the whole pregnancy." Tony says.

"Why the hell not?" Howard asks angrily.

"There is more going on at the moment than you know, Natasha did you get what you needed?" Tony asks when her body relaxes again.

"Yeah, I got it, oh and I ran into Howard." Natasha explains. "Alright, come on Tony we planned for this. You've got to do it, I'll talk you through it." Natasha says, and that's what she does, three hours later a little girl was born.

"Did you choose a name chérie?" Howard asks.

"Yeah, Peggy Melinda Stark." Natasha says.

"It's perfect for her." Tony says handing the baby over to her mother.

"Yeah it is." Howard says looking over Natasha's shoulder at his daughter.

"Howard, I hate to say this, but you have to go." Natasha says tears in her eyes after everything that happened that day.

"I know, can I hold her?" Howard asks and Natasha hand her over.

"Hello princess, you be a good girl for your mummy and your big brother ok? And do me a favour never forget that out there somewhere your daddy loves you too, who knows Peggy, maybe we'll meet one day. I have to go. Goodbye Baby girl." Howard says and kisses his daughter's head before handing her back to Natasha, he kisses Natasha before getting up and walking over to Tony.

"It's good to meet you son, that watch was genius, I'd have never thought of it. You're clearly more of a genius than I am, I'm so proud of you." Howard says before hugging his son, then Tony sent him back.

"Well Tasha, you're a mum." Tony says.

"Yeah I am. And I can finish the serum. Tony, you and I both know it's not safe enough for her here." Natasha says regret clearly in her eyes. "Not at the moment with everything else going on. I've been thinking about this for eight months, and I'm going to take her back in time, with Howard isn't safe and will alter the time line too much, I'll send her to grow up with Skye. I'll leave her my ring on a chain, it has the red room insignia engraved into it so I'll be able to find her. Howard's way of saying he loves every part of me." Natasha explains.

"Nat, Skye had a crap upbringing, you don't want Peggy in foster homes." Tony says.

"No, but she needs to be an adult at this time so that no one will find her, if we do it now than we can tell everyone I lost the baby and she'll be safe. Meanwhile Coulson and Skye can find her." Natasha says.

"Tasha you can't even walk, how are you going to take her to a foster home?" Tony asks.

"Alright how about this, I keep her for a month, then I take her back and tell everyone she was kidnapped that way when I go on the plane to look for her and talk to Coulson and Skye it will look normal?" Natasha asks.

"Alright, now how do we explain the fact that she's born completely healthy and four months early?" Tony asks. They both stay silent for a moment.

"We can't, we just have to wait a few hours until I can walk before sending her back." Natasha says crying, Tony nodding grimly realising it is the only thing they can do.

"Or, when I can walk I go back in time to three minutes from now and take her back in case someone walks in here." Natasha suggests knowing that the longer she spends with Peggy the harder it will be to let her go.

"Natasha, wait a few hours and spend that time with your daughter. I'll get Steve to bring down a blanket for her." Tony says getting his phone out and texting his boyfriend.

"How are things with you and Steve going?" Natasha asks as she lightly bounces the gurgling baby, she has her father's eyes.

"Really, really great!" Tony says a massive grin on his face.

"I heard Steve had a big night last night." Natasha says smirking and winked at Tony who had the grace to blush. Luckily Steve walking in stopped the conversation.

"Tony, why did you want a blanket and small sewing kit? Oh my gosh, baby and Natasha, Natasha holding a baby, why is Natasha holding her baby, oh right time travel." Steve says calming down a bit.

"Because she's naked, and the sewing kit so I can put her name on the blanket. Or at least her initials since her name can't be on it." Tony says.

"Tony, her initials are PMS, at least change the order, or just put a letter in the corners, then people can choose an order but it's still her name." Natasha suggests and Tony nods and gets to work.

"I'm not even going to ask how you know how to sew, I am curious though what's her name?" Steve asks.

"Peggy Melinda Stark" Natasha says not looking up from her child's face, she's the most beautiful thing she had ever seen, turned out spending those few hours with her made it easier to take her back, because they made her love Peggy more, which made her firmly believe in her decision. Six hours later, Steve having gone back to stall people again. Natasha gets ready to go. She'd changed and showered as well as wrapped Peggy in the blanket that now had her initials in purple stitching. A bright flash of light later and her and the baby were gone. She knew where she was and immediately headed to the foster home that she knew Skye was brought to hoping that the two girls grow up together and look out for each other.

"Peggy shh." Natasha says as she attempts to soothe the crying baby on her way through the streets. She goes to central park and sits on a bench. "Um, I know, a lullaby, my parting words, I just hope you remember them."

"_I remember tears streaming down your face_

_When I said I'd never let you go._

_When all those shadows almost killed your light._

_I remember you said,_

_Don't leave me here alone._

_But all that's dead and gone and passed tonight._

_Just close your eyes, the sun is going down_

_You'll be alright, no one can hurt you now._

_Come morning light, you and I'll be safe and sound._

_Don't you dare look out your window darling everything's on fire,_

_The war outside our door keeps raging on_

_Hold on to this lullaby,_

_Even when the music's gone. Gone._

_Just close your eyes, the sun is going down_

_You'll be alright, no one can hurt you now._

_Come morning light, you and I'll be safe and sound._"

Natasha sang (Safe and sound Taylor Swift) Peggy now asleep Natasha walked to the foster home.

When she walked in the receptionist looked at her, her eyes full of pain regret and tears. "We'll do our best." The lady says knowing the next question that comes from people who look like that.

"Thankyou." Natasha says handing Peggy over. The nun starts walking away when "Wait, I want her to have this." Natasha says grabbing the necklace chain from her pocket and taking off her wedding ring, she then thread the chain through the ring and put it on Peggy. "One day when it's safer I'll find you, I promise." Natasha whispers to her daughter.

"What's her name and date of birth?" the nun asks her.

"I'm sorry, but it's best you don't know, there are some bad people after me and it's not safe, if they find out about her I have to make sure they can never find her." Natasha says looking at her daughter once more before walking out and going home, little did she know that simply by the time she had walked back to where she landed, little baby Peggy had been taken, and an easy life was not for her. A flash of light later and she was home, crying in Tony's arms.

Tony ended up carrying her to her room and holding her while on her bed while she cried.

"JARVIS, please ask Clint to come down here." Tony says to the AI. Five minutes later the hawk walked into the room.

"What do you want Tony, Oh my god Nat." he says and he comes up to the taking Tony's place holding her. Now Barton is holding her and Tony is sitting in front of her on the bed holding her hand. With the other hand Tony typed a message into his phone and showed it to Clint it read: Nat Lost The Baby

Clint immediately tightened his hold on her. Three days later and Nat was no better she wasn't sleeping, she wasn't eating and she had barely ever stopped crying, Barton was always with her, finally Tony had had enough.

"Barton, can you leave us alone for a minute?" Tony asked. Barton looked to Nat who just managed to nod. When Barton left Tony looked at her.

"Alright Nat, the machine needs to be built, serum made and you still have to find her, lying here crying about losing her is not going to help get her back, I've called Skye, she'll be here in twenty to pick you up and the plans will continue, you go 'looking for support from your best friend' and actually be looking for Peggy, my dad won't be happy if you never find that ring. So get your ass out of bed get dressed, have a friggin shower and be in the living room in ten minutes to say your goodbyes." Tony informs her before walking out. Natasha lay there for a few more minutes wallowing in self-pity before realising he was right, and Peggy needed her to get out of that bed and start the search. And sure enough that brings us to now, Natasha is in the elevator on her way to the living room where Tony has called everyone together.

"Tony why are we here?" Clint asked, "I should be with Natasha she shouldn't be alone."

"I'm not a child Clinton I don't need a babysitter." Natasha says in mock anger when she exits the elevator, but at the mention of child she felt a pang and fought to keep the tears out of her eyes.

"How did you?" Clint asks Stark.

"You will never know." Tony says in an annoying voice.

"I'm going to stay with Mels for a while, I just need to get away from the tower." Natasha explains Clint nods.

"If you need anything at all, just call." Clint reminds her, she nods just as Skye comes out of the elevator.

"Hey guys, Tash you ready to go?" Skye asks.

"Yeah, let's go, Thanks Clint for everything you've done, and Thanks Tony for getting me to go." Natasha says.

"Anytime Tasha. Anytime." Tony says reassuringly before Skye gets in the elevator and they're gone.

"You did the right thing Tony." Steve says as he puts a hand on his boyfriends shoulder.

"I hope so." Tony says.

Meanwhile in the elevator.

"Alright Skye so here's the thing, I didn't lose the baby, I need your help in finding her." Natasha says much to the hacker's surprise.


	13. Chapter 13

CHAPTER 13 – THE SECRETIVE FIVE BECOME SIX

"You what now?" Skye asks in the elevator.

"I'll explain once we're in Coulson's office." Natasha says, they get to the car and drive back to the bus.

"Nat, is it okay if I hug you?" May asks when they get on the plane to the shock of everyone but Mel, Nat and Coulson.

"Yeah." Natasha responds and the pair hug. Then Natasha's phone rings.

"Hey Tasha, just checking you got to the plane ok." Tony says on the other end.

"Yeah I'm here, yeah I'm okay, I got to go though, I'll talk to you later Tony." Natasha says.

"Okay then, see ya." Tony says before hanging up.

"Okay, I'll show you to your bunk." Skye says and helps Tasha with her bags. Once they were dumped in there the two girls closes their bunk doors to look like they were in there before sneaking up to Coulson's office and hiding in case he wasn't the only one to come in. fortunately he was though and when he sat down at his desk, they came out of the closet.

"Finally geez it was getting really uncomfortable in there." Skye says as they come out giving Coulson a heart attack.

"You guys trying to kill me?!" Coulson asks hand to his chest.

"Can you make this room secure?" Natasha asks, Coulson nods. "Do it." She tells him and he does. "Alright, I didn't really lose the baby in that way, but she is gone. I went back in time again to get a chemical I needed from Germany in the late forties, I was there a month too long tracking it down, on the way back I ran into Howard, well he ended up coming back with me and Tony delivered the baby in the lab. Howard was then sent back, a few hours later I went back in time and took the baby to a foster home so that she was an adult now and even if people thought I'd somehow had the baby four months early and given it up, they still won't be able to find her, now I need your help to find her." Natasha quickly explains.

"Alright, I gave her my wedding ring on a chain, which ok isn't uncommon but." Natasha begins.

"It had an engraving on it?" Skye asks.

"Exactly, and I gave her a baby blanket but it couldn't have her name on it so Tony stitched." Natasha begins again.

"Her three initials in three of the corners in purple stitch?" Skye asks.

"Yes, and I sang her a song that I think she will remember." Natasha begins for the third time.

"Despite how young she was she will remember the sing and your face until an unfortunate bike accident will make her forget your face but remember that song." Coulson says.

"And that song was Safe and Sound by Taylor Swift." Skye adds.

"Ok how are you two doing that?" Natasha asks.

"Coulson do you still have that box I asked you to look after?" Skye asks.

"Yeah it's right here." Coulson says grabbing it from the filing cabinet and handing it to her.

"Natasha do you remember me telling you the orphanage gave me the name Mary-sue Poots?" Skye asks.

"Yeah why?" Natasha asks now completely lost.

"It's because they had three letters to work from, M, S and P." Skye says. And pulls out her baby blanket, the exact same blanket.

"What?" Natasha asks in disbelief, could it be true? All along even before she was pregnant her child had been right here.

"Can I see your other ring?" Skye asks, Natasha hand it to her. Skye pulls out a necklace she's wearing with the ring on it, and sure enough the two match, they both have the red room insignia engraved into them.

"Peggy?" Natasha asks.

"I think so, but we won't know for sure until we get a blood test, thing about babies is they all look similar, especially in foster care, these things ending up belonging to someone else wouldn't surprise me." Skye says.

"But we can't ask Simmons to do it we have to do it ourselves, next time you guys have a mission, everyone but me will be able to go because I can defend myself again, if you give me a mouth swab before you leave than I'll run it before you get back and delete any trace of it." Natasha suggests.

"Okay, now we all need to act like nothing has changed and go down there because we've been up here too long." Coulson says deactivating the security. The three then head down and find Ward making lunch.

"Ward? Are you trying to be nice?" Skye asks then puts her hand to his forehead, "Are you feeling okay?"

"Haha, yes I'm fine I just thought it would be nice for people not to have to make their own lunch." Ward says.

"And so you made pizza, my favourite ooh and with my favourite toppings! Alright Ward what happened." Natasha asks.

"Agent Barton called." Ward said sounding pained.

"Ohhh, now it makes sense." Natasha says nodding.

"Does this have to do with what you guys said he did when we were at the tower?" Skye asks, Natasha nods and Ward visibly paled.

"You told her?!" Ward asks.

"Oh but you guys won't tell me, really? Come on, just tell me what happened." Coulson whines when May walked into the room.

"Phil, remember our deal." May says before walking out again.

"Right yes, your business do me a favour and don't tell me." Coulson says before going back to his office.

"How'd she know to come in?" Natasha whispered to Skye and the hacker's eyes widen. They both then as subtly as possible looked for what could be listening devices.

"Later." Skye says as quietly as possible. And Natasha nods.

"Mission Briefing in ten, everyone be there." Coulson said over the PA system. Ten minutes later everyone was around the command centre table. "Alright everyone, there's an 084, we have to go I to investigate, Natasha, Fury is aware of your presence here but says that you need to stay on the plane, the rest of us are going in. In China before anyone asks, a long time ago a village was destroyed by an 084, now that 084 is long gone but SHIELD has reason to believe its back." Coulson explains. "Alright people, this thing destroyed a village, gear up. We leave in twenty, May, Skye and Stark my office." Coulson orders.

"Alright based on your looks you guys know what I'm going to say, this is the same village and the reason we know it's not the same 084 is because she's here. Skye if you want to you can stay behind with Natasha in fact I request that you do, we're all too close to this, but you more than anyone." Coulson says.

"Alright, I'll stay." Skye says hesitantly but knowing she won't like what she sees anyway. So half an hour later Skye and Natasha are in the lab while everyone else is investigating the 084.

"Alright it's running, give it ten minutes and we'll have our answer." Natasha says and the two sit down in awkward silence.

"Skye, was it true what Coulson said, that you remembered your mothers face before an accident?" Natasha asks.

"Yeah, I remember remembering my mother's and father's faces, my mother's voice while she sang, my father telling me something. But I don't actually remember anything but the song, everyone thought I made it up, I was pissed off when Taylor Swift made it because I thought she'd stolen my mother's song." Skye says, they both laugh a little at that.

"Do you remember what your father told you?" Natasha asks.

"No." Skye states, they sit in silence for a few minutes.

"Well, if this test comes back positive then I'll tell you what he said." Natasha promises.

"If this test comes back positive, Tony Stark will be my brother, Howard Stark my father and my name will be Peggy Melinda Stark." Skye says with a smile on her face. A few minutes later the machine beeps. Natasha looks at it.

"It's positive, you're my daughter." Natasha says smiling.

"You're my mum?" Skye asks tears in her eyes before running over and hugging her mother for the first time in a long time. "It's almost fitting that this is where we find out." Skye muses. Natasha wipes all record of the test before getting her phone out and texting Tony saying: Found.

"Wow, I admit I was losing it for a few days there worrying I wasn't going to find you." Natasha admits.

"What changed your mind?" Skye asked.

"You brother, he came in and basically told me to get my ass out of bed and go find my daughter." Natasha says and they both laugh.

"So I'm guessing I was named after Peggy Carter and May. So what was Agent Carter like?" Skye asks.

"She was lovely, she was well actually quite terrifying at times but a strong women. She was my maid of honour at you father's and my wedding." Natasha says.

"Wow, I have a brother and a father." Skye says, "Do you think that it would be okay if I called you mum?" She asks in a quiet voice.

"Of course, I'm sorry I missed your life, but Skye you need to know that I still believe I made the right decision and I won't apologise, because you can defend yourself now and you're alive." Natasha says.

"I know mum, but we don't have to agree on that." Skye says then realises something, "I can't call you mum around the others can I?" she asks.

"No, I'm afraid not." Natasha woefully admits.

"Still, it doesn't matter what I call you, you're still my mum." Skye says surprised at how quickly she believes in her mother. An hour later after looking at photos Tony took of Natasha holding baby Skye and then Natasha printing off the only picture of Howard, Natasha and Skye, the rest of the team return to find them pissing themselves laughing on the ground in the living room of the bus. Skye is rolling on the ground and Natasha looks like she's barely breathing.

"What the hell is going on here?" Coulson asks.

"Ha, and you Ha, and Hill, Ha." Skye attempt's to explain while laughing.

"Tasha what stories have you been telling her?" May asks, Natasha trues to speak but just laughs harder, Coulson rolls his eyes and walks off, May goes to the cockpit leaving FitzSimmons and Ward with the laughing pair, then Natasha's phone rings, she looks at the phone.

"I just realised I picked up the wrong phone this is Barton's." Natasha says Skye suddenly sits up.

"Ooh give it here." Skye requests, she then answers the phone in the deepest voice she could manage. "Agent Barton speaking."

'_Agent Barton, I have your next mission for you, Peggy Stark is not dead, find her and being her to me.'_ The phone then hangs up.

"Oops, sorry Agent Sitwell try ringing Natasha's phone, he should pick up then." Skye says pretending someone was there and trying to hide her fear with amusement.

"What did you think was going to happen?" Natasha asks finally stopping laughing enough to speak.

"Honestly I was hoping Riley would answer." She explains, Natasha having told Skye about Riley half an hour before hand.

"Agent Stark and Skye my office now." Coulson's voice came through the PA system.

"I think he found the pudding." Skye says to cover as she thinks she knows why they're being called up. When the two get up there Coulson secures the room.

"Ok, well the test was positive also we have a new code for V's, um a normal V just means get there but don't act sussly, a double V means get there as quick as possible screw subtlety. And a little v with a big V means get there as quick as fucking possible and do not let anyone suspect anything." Natasha says when the room is secure. Skye is still trying not to let the fear show on her face.

"Alright, I've just had a phone call from Fury, he said that something was happening in SHIELD, that he couldn't talk about it with Maria and needed my help, so I'm going to do with him what you did with the two of us at central park." Coulson explains. The other two couldn't see it but Skye used her phone, made a program and sent it to Coulson, Stark's, Steve's and Natasha's phones. A big V with a little v. They saw it immediately.

"Something's happening we need to get to the vault now, and it's dangerously important." Natasha says.

"We were heading to New York anyway, I'll say you guys were drunk to explain down there and drunk dialled Fury, the three of us need to have a talk and I'll tell May to step on it." Coulson says before taking of the security. "May, step on it, we need to reach New York within the hour."

"Yes sir." Came her reply.

"Alright, you two are supposedly drunk off your asses, go act the part make the others take care of you." Coulson write on a piece of paper before shredding it.

"Hey Robot, have you been oiled recently? You're all squeaking." Skye says slurring her words and leaning into him when they difficultly get down stairs.

"Skye are you drunk?" Ward asks.

"It's not called being drunk it's called being fun, you should try it sometime Grant." Nat says.

"Ok Natasha, why don't we go get you two some coffee." He suggests they shrug and attempt to follow him to the kitchen, when they get there he goes to the wall panel. "FitzSimmons I found out what's wrong with them."

"What?" They ask in unison.

"Well, Tequila's my guess but Vodka wouldn't surprise me, either way they are drunk of their faces." Ward explains.

"Ohhh." Was heard next before what sounded like things being pushed over, then the two scientists ran into the kitchen.

"Sorry, we got to see this." Simmons says, Natasha and Skye were whispering back and forth.

"Haha Haha, let's do it." Skye suddenly says. And Natasha nods.

"What are you two doing?" Ward asks cautiously.

"Presenting, two bored people." Natasha says and the two bow.

"What the hell?" Fitz asks. Then Skye starts speaking.

"Jem, Jem, Jem, Jem, Jemmy, Jem, Jem, Jem." She begins to the tune of Two and a half men. "Jem, Jem, Jem, Jem, Jemmy, Jem, Jem, Jem." She continues before Natasha starts with the son's part.

"Fitz, Fitz, Fitz, Fitz, Fitzy, Fitz, Fitz, Fitz, Fitz, Fiiiitz, Fitz Fitz." Natasha finishes before they both attempt to bow and instead land in a heap on the floor. The two were having a lot of fun pretending to be drunk.


	14. Chapter 14

CHAPTER 14 – WHO NEEDS TIME TRAVEL ANYWAY

When they land in New York the two 'drunks' are helped into a car with Coulson driving.

"That was fun." Natasha admits.

"Yeah we should do that more often, it's more fun acting drunk when you aren't actually drunk." Skye agrees, they both start laughing at their antics. They kept coming up with stupid things that Ward stopped them from doing, or they got to do it, it was like a free pass.

"Alright, I'll go to central Park, we'll leave the car there, the two of you run to the V. Fury and I will either meet you there both conscious or he'll have been iced." Coulson says when they get to central park. The mother and daughter run off towards the only place left in the world that they feel is safe. They get there three minutes later, Steve and Tony are already in the Vault.

"Finally, what's going on we got the urgent V." Steve says.

"I thought you guys sent it?" Natasha says.

"Actually mum, I sent it." Skye says surprising everyone in the room.

"Wait, did you call her mum?" Steve asks when Natasha asks "Why didn't you say in Coulson's office?"

"Before I say anymore everyone search everywhere in here, I'm not certain it's secure anymore, nor Coulson's office. So come on people search." Skye orders and they do, an hour later they are all happy that it's not bugged.

"Alright, yes I called her mum, I am Peggy Melinda Stark, and yes I sent out the V. something happened when I answered Barton's phone, the reason I had us check it was because he's been down here. I will explain when AC and Fury get here." Skye says.

"Fury's coming?" Tony asks.

"Yes something's have changed since we last spoke." Skye says seemingly taking charge of the meeting. Five minutes later the other two enter, thankfully both fully conscious.

"He's safe." Coulson states upon entering.

"What is going on?" Fury asks confused.

"We all believe as you do Director, only as of an hour ago, we have more solid reason to." Skye says.

"Right, now Peggy explain." Natasha says calling her by her name, Skye smiles at her, or Peggy does I should say.

"Right, I answered Barton's phone earlier, the person on the other end was attempting to inform Agent Barton of his next mission, he said Peggy Stark is still alive, find her and bring her to me. I didn't want to mention it because I now realise how close Barton and May are." Peggy explains.

"Who is this and who is Peggy Stark?" Fury asks confused.

"You are of course aware Director that Mrs Stark here was pregnant a week ago, so I assume you are not aware that she then went back in time for a few months before coming forward and having the baby, naming her Peggy Melinda Stark, she then for the baby's protection sent the baby back in time so that she would be an adult now, that baby was me. Also I've been a consultant on the bus for over a year now, used to be known as Skye. Now may I continue?" she asks sarcastically.

"I like her Agent Stark." Fury says finally calling Natasha a Stark.

"Right anyway, I don't know that anyone else noticed but up until now no one has been acting any different than usual or at least not much that we should have noticed and thought something big was happening in SHIELD, we all knew that the people in here were people we could turn to to trust and everyone else pretends like nothing has changed, we know when it happened but we don't know why it happened and unfortunately at the moment all we can prove is that something is up with Barton." Skye says and pauses letting her words sink in.

"Ms Stark, I believe that for some reason your family is in the middle of this, something was happening since New York but it became very noticeable when Agent Stark returned from her trip through time, in that time the amount of Stark's in this time doubled. Then you were born and there were two of you here at once, Howard was here when you were born as Coulson said on the walk over, that means that the whole family except Maria was here at the same time. After that I noticed something very wrong with Hill and this phone call happened." Fury says.

"Something changed when you came back to the future, but it happened after New York as well. What if the people that were under Loki's control still are, there were four of them. That's enough for us to realise something wrong, and then after you went back in time history rewrote to something else?" Tony suggested.

"Nice thought, but I have his sceptre, neither Thor nor SHIELD nor Loki has it so no one can use it to control anyone." Natasha says. Everyone just looks at her.

"Yes okay, I kept the sceptre after New York I didn't trust SHIELD or Asgard so I kept it." She says.

"Alright, important thing is Barton still thinks I'm dead because he never got the phone call, or even if he did, the person on the other end doesn't seem to know that I'm an adult." Skye adds.

"But you're still a target. Bottom line is that we can't do anything until we know what's happened, what changed, who Barton's working for and who made that phone call. But if we answer just one of these questions then we have somewhere to start." Steve says.

"And who May and Ward have been talking on coms to." Coulson adds.

"May's been talking to me, that team bar Ms Stark here was designed so that you would pick them and the right team was there in case there were side effects to how we brought you back." Fury admits.

"Why don't we go back in time to the exact point that none of us had any contact with SHIELD and see what happened?" Peggy suggests.

"Well, how do we know that what happened to the other won't happen to whoever goes back?" Tony asks.

"Not whoever me." Peggy says defiantly.

"No." Tony, Coulson, Steve and Natasha all yell.

"Well it can't be anyone else, SHIELD know's all of you, it didn't know me back then they won't notice me. I won't be in SHIELD I'll be watching from the sidelines type thing." Peggy assures them though no one seems to be giving in.

"Ms Stark every time someone has travelled in time they've added more Stark's to the equation and things have gotten worse." Fury says.

"Well you guys think of something." Peggy says, then a bright flash of light later and someone is has appeared. It's a girl, looks about nineteen.

"Ok kids, this is where it gets complicated." She says in a clearly British accent. "At the moment you all, have no reason to trust me, but I have a message from all of you, signed by all of you that is mean to convince you." The girl says, she has brown skin but lighter than Fury's and Brown hair but green eyes. Peggy grabs the note and reads it.

"Alright, what do we have to do?" she asks the girl.

"And you all said you wouldn't get it." The girl says with a smug grin. "I've been sent to be the one to do your plan. The one you've just come up with, I have a note from Director Fury to give to Agent Hill at an exact date and time, apparently I'll then observe what happens that changed everything." The girl replies.

"Who are you?" Steve asks.

"Ahh, I've got a note for that as well." She says before handing it over to Peggy who reads it.

"Of course, alright you've got my attention." Peggy says. Everyone looks at her but trusts her.

"Alright, wait here I'll be back when I know." The girl says before closing her eyes and disappearing in a flash of bright light again.

"How'd she do that? Who was she? What did the notes say?" Tony asks.

"First one said trust her, second said don't ask. But trust me, I created them." She says.

"So, you're my little sister?" Tony asks surprised.

"Yeah, I guess so." Peggy responded.

"That really shouldn't surprise me, you guys are so similar and what is that on the ground?" Coulson asks noticing something.

"It's her wallet, must have fallen out of her pocket." Peggy says as she picks it up and looks inside. Her eyes widen in shock. Then the girl re-appears. "Skye?" she asks the girl who looks over.

"How did you? Hey give that back." She says and snatches the wallet back. She then looks around at them and slowly steps back. "I'm sorry, I can't help you, you need to do this yourself." The girl, Skye says before disappearing.

"Skye, what was in her wallet?" Coulson asks Peggy.

"Her name, is Skye Fury – Stark. Her birth certificate was in her wallet." Peggy says before looking over to Fury. "You're her father." She says.

"Who's the mother?" Fury asks almost dreading the answer, everyone was expecting her to say Natasha but instead she said.

"Me."

"Say what now?" Steve asks.

"I think that would explain the fact that she didn't have a device that sent her through time, she seemed to do it herself. I believe Peg that you might be able to as well, you see we were worried about what affect time travel has on an unborn baby, I think we just found out." Tony explains, everyone takes a step back from Peggy, "And who knows what else she can do." He adds.

"We have to know what she saw." Steve says panicking.

"Hey, Steve it's ok." Tony says grabbing his hand. "She's their kid, she probably has major problems."

"Hey, that's my future daughter you're talking about." Peggy says. "Look, just everyone focus on what we know for sure.

The people in this room are at the moment the only people we know we can trust.

Something happened after New York while all of us were otherwise occupied or un important.

Something is happening with Barton and Hill.

I'm being targeted.

Now how do these things connect?" Peggy asks.

"I don't know, but one or more of us has to go off grid. And Natasha needs to start working missions again, I think Fury and Peggy go off grid, find out anything they can while we work topside doing the same. Agreed?" Coulson asks. Everyone nods.

"Alright, we don't know how long you guys will be gone, if you need us send us a V. but you should both leave now so even we don't know how or where you are going." Natasha suggests. "And take care of her Nick."

"I will, I promise you that." Fury says, she knows he means it because he never makes promises.

"Goodbye Peggy, be safe." Natasha pleads as she hugs her daughter.

"I will Mum. Hey AC. Don't destroy the bus while I'm gone, that's my job." Peggy says before walking over to Tony.

"See ya Junior." Tony says and hugs her.

"Later Senior." She says poking her tongue out at him, "I'm happy for you and Steve by the way." She whispers before leaving with Fury. Tony is just there smiling.

"What are you so happy about?" Steve asks.

"Tell you later." Tony says with a wink.

"Ok, well. Phil, your down a genius, want me to stay on board?" Natasha asks.

"You just want to act drunk again because you know when we get back you have to a bit, and then tomorrow you act hung over and everyone will be getting you things." Coulson points out but the two go to head back to the plane.

"Don't forget to lock up when you leave guys." Natasha yells back down.

"Yep." Tony yells back, "Soo." Tony says before Steve kisses him, which Tony is more than happy to respond to.

"Sorry, forgot my jacket. You know there are some things I don't want to see." Natasha says coming back grabbing her jacket and leaving again. Though Tony and Steve were still kissing.

"I don't mind Banner knowing." Tony says randomly.

"You know neither do I." Steve says before the two head back to the tower, unfortunately they forget to lock the door before putting the couch back over it. When they get to the tower they walk into the kitchen as see Clint eating toast.

"Hey where the hell have you guys been? Everyone's been looking for you and Ohhhh, nevermind, I don't want to know." Clint says the Banner walks in.

"Hey your back, you could have said Clint. Everyone's been looking for you, Fury, Skye and Tasha. Where were all of you?" Bruce asks a suspicious looks on his face.

"Well I don't know about everyone else but ahh." Tony says then winks at Steve to which he receives an elbow in the stomach. "Ow, geez Cap and here I thought you were in a good mood." Tony says going along with what Clint thought.

"Oh my god, did not need to hear that guys, you know, happy for you but, keep it to yourselves." Clint says. Tony just smirks and walks out the room.

"Excuse me while I go kill him." Steve says before following Tony out of the room.

"I'm missing something." Bruce says and Clint mods.

"Oooh yeah, you remember months ago when we were trying to work out who Tony liked?" Clint asks and Bruce nods. Clint flicks his head in the direction Steve left in.

"Seriously?" Bruce asks and Clint nods. "I'm happy for them."

"Meanwhile, Fury and that kid Skye still haven't turned up. We also have no real idea where any of them were." Clint comments.

"This is going to sound weird, but the people that went missing have been acting weird since after New York. Since Tony finished with the mandarin and Steve and Natasha got back from their mission that they went off grid for. Since Natasha got back from her trip through time it's gotten worse." Banner says.

"Yeah, I thought I was the only one to notice it. Natasha said something to me about it but I didn't realise so I kind of blew her off about it but since then I haven't stopped noticing it and she's in her own way avoiding me." Clint agrees.


	15. Chapter 15

CHAPTER 15 – THE OTHER SIDE

"I don't know who to trust anymore." Steve hears Bruce say to Clint, in fact he heard the whole conversation.

"How've I been acting weird?" Steve asks re-entering the room. They both look at him. "What?"

"Okay, one you were just eavesdropping two you've been sarcastic and funnily rude and three you're dating a guy you hate. Seriously think about it, before dating name once when you were getting along and not arguing?" Bruce says, "What's worrying me is I've been doing the same, minus the dating Tony thing, I've been social joking around and so to check I went into the hulk proof cage and elevated my heart rate, I didn't hulk out." He says.

"I have been too, acting weird I mean, I was training earlier and I missed where I was aiming." Clint says.

"And think about it. How openly emotional has Natasha been, I mean I get she lost her husband and child but, her being excited about being a mother and the fact that she got married just prove my point. That and the fact you slept with Tony, isn't there a no sex before marriage thing in the forties?" Bruce asks.

"Not to mention laws about dating men, since when do you not follow old laws Steve?" Clint asks.

"I've got to go." Steve says not knowing what to do but needing to get away. He leaves the tower and goes to the Peggy from his time. Thanks to the fact that everyone there knows him he's allowed to go right in.

"Hey Peggy." Steve says.

"Steve you're alive?" Peggy says and starts crying. "Wait I knew that sorry Steve, I'm getting old now you know." She states.

"Peggy, do you think it sounds like something I'd do to date a guy. Sleep with said guy before marriage, be sarcastic and snarky, and eavesdrop on people?" Steve asks.

"Yes, let's face it you were always a bit like that, and the fact that you are dating a man probably will only bring that out in you more. Why?" Peggy asks, Steve gives her a look, "Oh I see." She says though no judgement at all was on her face. "How's Natasha?" she asks.

"She's been a lot better." Steve admits.

"Oh, what about the baby? Is it born?" Peggy asks.

"Yes, a beautiful girl. Her name's Peggy Melinda Stark." Steve informs her and she has the biggest smile on her face. "She's also twenty five."

"That's not funny Steven." Peggy says in a completely serious tone.

"I'm not joking, she's twenty five years old, and in danger. So she's off grid at the moment." Steve says.

"Why is she twenty five?" Peggy asks.

"Well, I mentioned the in danger part, when she was a baby a few weeks ago Natasha sent her back in time to keep her safe. So Peggy grew up in foster homes until two days ago Natasha found her, then some stuff happened and her along with Nick Fury had to go off grid." Steve explains.

"What happened?" Peggy asked wishing her precious SHIELD was ok.

"We aren't sure but something, one of our close friends has been ordered by some unknown guy to kidnap Peggy and take her to him." Steve explains, Peggy has a small smile on her face.

"A long time ago Steve, you died, the tesseract was lost and Natasha left. When that happened everyone in the SSR got severely paranoid, everyone was a threat no one was acting like themselves, no one trusted anyone, everyone had a few other people they knew they trusted but couldn't explain why, they were still hesitant to share information though, the agency started falling apart, then the war ended and everyone realised that nothing was actually going on but everyone knew something had caused that, after we ran some tests it was found that the electrical activity in our brains was slightly increased as was our white blood cell count. A few months later everyone was back to normal. Know this Steve, wherever the tesseract goes, trouble follows, and there is only one way to stop it." She says before pausing.

"How?" Steve asks.

"Steve? You're alive?" she said.

"I have to go Peggy." Steve says before kissing her forehead and leaving.

"Alright, have to remember I'm being paranoid and nothing is happening. I have to run that test, need Tony to do it. Even paranoia can't explain that phone call. Barton's the only thing that can't be explained, that girl said we had to solve this ourselves, that makes Peggy's story makes sense. Except it's been months. But things got worse after Natasha got back, everyone was paranoid after New York but everyone would assume it's just after the battle, but then Natasha reinfected everyone. Of course, just a month or two and everyone will be fine, so just remember I'm being paranoid." Steve says to himself on the walk back to the tower, when he gets there he goes straight to the gym.

"I'll get the test done later, maybe I can trust Bruce to do it, then I don't have to speak to Tony until everything's sorted and people are thinking straight, yeah I mean Bruce and Clint were just being paranoid as well right?" Steve says as he starts beating the punching bag.

"Natasha has been slightly more herself since she got back from going back in time the last time, she spent more months there, she'll be okay in a few days." Steve says forming a plan in his head. "All I have to do is avoid Tony for a few days, can't go on a mission with the paranoia, I could disappear off grid. Or I'll just stay at my apartment, I might upset Tony but if when we are thinking clearly he changes his mind, well Pepper would take him back when the situation was explained, he said he knew because she wasn't automatically his first hello, well maybe he just hesitated for a second and became paranoid. Oh god, he doesn't love me does he. No I'm being paranoid again, am I getting paranoid about being paranoid ok now I'm being paranoid oh god I'm addicted to the word paranoid no I'm being paranoid about the word paranoid, or is that what I'm paranoid about? I need help, no that's just the paranoia talking. No something's wrong with me, no paranoia." Steve remains silent for a second and stops punching the bag. "Once this is over I won't fight therapy anymore, until then, I'll stay at my apartment." Steve decides and that's what he does.

Meanwhile since Skye and Fury left the vault they've travelled to Chicago to meet with a contact of Fury's.

"Stop thinking about it Fury, if it ever happens you worrying won't change that and if it doesn't then you worrying won't matter." Skye explains her thoughts.

"It was a kid Ms Stark." Fury says freaking out.

"It was our daughter director. In my family when weird freaky time shit happens you take it in stride and don't pause to feel uncomfortable." Skye has just finished saying when someone knocks her over into Fury, she panics and closes her eyes, when she opens then again everything around them has changed.

"Skye, what did you do?" Fury asks.

"I have no idea, where are we?" Skye asks.

"I think the question is when." Fury says looking at a newspaper. "The answer to that being 1952. Great now what do we do?"

"Easy, go to my father. Get him to send us back like he did mum." Skye says.

"Oh and where is he huh?" Fury asks.

"The where is the easy part, the actually getting to him is difficult, especially considering he won't exactly recognise me." Skye complains.

"You'll remind him." Fury says. She smiles, then they both look awkward.

"Alright, all in favour of forgetting that happened follow me." Skye said walking away and back to the train station to New York, planning to go to the mansion. Fury follows her. Three hours later they are in New York.

"Well this place has changed, I don't know how to get there and people keep staring at my outfit, and your eye." Skye notices, "I can't navigate, through here, we are lost in more ways than one." Skye says defeated.

"Not so much Skye, get ready to meet your father." Fury says as he sees a large crowd following a car whose window is down and inside is Howard Stark.

"How do we get his attention before he drives off?" Skye asks the car coming closer and closer.

"Skye, trust me just turn around and start slowly walking away when I yell out just say you're sorry and walk back ok?" he asks she nods and begins walking away. When the car was within hearing range Fury turned to Skye and yells. "Peggy Melinda Stark get back here we need to find your father."

"Sorry, I'm coming." She yells back before hurrying back over. It works, the car stops and the door opens.

"Get in." Howard says and they do. Skye not having met the guy just follows Fury.

"Fury who is this?" she asks.

"Ms Stark, met Howard Stark, Howard Stark, I believe you've met Peggy." Fury says, Skye just looks at him for a minute with shock evident on her face.

"Dad?" she asks.

"Peggy?" he asks, she nods they hug. "What are you doing here where is your mother and who is your friend?" Howard asks.

"Well, I stuffed up, she's in 2015 and this is Director Nick Fury of SHIELD." Skye explains.

"Ok, he said you guys needed to find me, what's up?" Howard asks.

"We need you to send us back. See we got here without a machine but we can't get back again and who's driving the car?" Skye asks suddenly realising that none of them are in the driver's seat.

"Jarvis." Howard says both their faces light up.

"Really, as in the REAL Jarvis?" Skye says awestruck.

"Your mother reacted the same way, actually now that I think about it she asked me not to tell anyone that but still, what is it with Jarvis in the future?" Howard asks.

"Tony talks about him a lot." Skye explains.

"Well, when we get to the mansion you guys can meet him if you'd like." Howard offers and Skye nods profusely. "Ok, now about the time machine, I destroyed it, Natasha told me to when she left and for once I did as she told me to." Howard says.

"I guess we have to go back the way we came." Fury says.

"Yeah except we can't, it's not like it happens everytime I close my eyes Nick." Skye says, they both look awkward again. "I Fucking hate time travel."

"Language Peggy." Howard reprimands.

"Right sorry dad." Skye apologises. Fury laughs.

"I'm so telling your brother about that when we get home." Fury says.

"You wouldn't!" Skye yells. He just grins at her and she playfully hits him, "You suck." Skye says laughing.

"You know your entire family has said that to me at some point." Fury says.

"Even my dad?" Skye asks surprised.

"Oh yeah, him only once and about forty years from now but yeah." He replies.

"Why'd I say you suck?" Howard asks.

"Long story." He responds.

"Anyway, point is it's not going to work." Skye says.

"Have a little faith in yourself Skye, you went off grid for a week no questions asked and for two days you were alone. Give yourself some credit for that, a person can do amazing things when they realise they are a part of something bigger. Besides our possible future daughter did it, you can too, it will just take time and practice." Fury reassures.

"Wait, future daughter?! You are with this guy?" Howard asks disapprovingly.

"No, not at all nooooo, it's just we had a visitor from the future, Skye, who's apparently our daughter." Skye explains.

"Yeah, why's he calling you Skye?" Howard asks.

"It's a long and complicated story that I'd very much rather not go into, point is, my name is now once again Peggy and that's what matters." She says before her eyes glaze over and she becomes nonresponsive.

"Peggy? Pegs?" Howard yells clicking his fingers in front of her face.

"Skye?" Fury yells. This continues for a few minutes the two males freaking out before she suddenly snaps out of it.

"What the hell was that?" Howard asks.

"I've no idea, but we need to get practicing now, we have to get back to the future!" Skye says urgently.


	16. Chapter 16

CHAPTER 16 – TRAITOR OR SAVIOUR?

Meanwhile Steve is in his room, bag half packed full of his stuff for his apartment, he's packing clothes into it when Tony walks in.

"Going somewhere?" Tony asks, wondering what could be happening since he's been refusing missions since this all started.

"Yeah, my apartment, something's happened and I'm going to stay there for a while, in two months something will happen and if it doesn't happen I'll come back." Steve explains.

"Steve what's happened?" Tony asks concerned it was something he did. Steve can't even look him in the eye.

"I can't tell you, give it a few weeks, when something has been confirmed I'll explain, I'm sorry Tony but I have to do this." Steve says.

"Well, I can come with you if you want, I can help Steve." Tony says becoming more anxious.

"No, Tony, you have to say here, it's for the best if you don't come." Steve says before leaving the tower having to go through the living room to get out. Tony goes to the living room then and heads straight to the bar.

"Hey, where'd Steve go?" Clint asks, he had been in the lounge room when Steve walked through and out without a word.

"He's staying at his apartment." Tony chokes out before guzzling his drink.

"What happened?" Clint asks as Tony pours himself another drink.

"No idea, he's just gone and I don't know why." Tony says after drinking all of his second drink and pouring a third. When he guzzles that down and pours a fourth Clint grabs it off him.

"Ok, Tony, we don't know he was breaking up with you, and even if we do this won't help." Clint says pouring his drink back into the bottle. "Look Tony, why are you dating him anyway? You hate the guy and he hates you, before dating tell me one time you acted any differently? He absolutely hates it when you call him Capsicle that's why you keep doing it. So tell me one time." Clint asks.

"The month and a half before we started dating." Tony says sadly.

"You liked him that long?" Clint asks surprised.

"Yes. And before that, well I'll admit we weren't the best of friends." Tony begins.

"But?" Clint asks doubtfully.

"But nothing, what does it matter I'm in love with him now, before that doesn't matter." Tony says shocking Clint.

"So Pepper doesn't matter?" Clint asks.

"She left me Clint." Tony snapped.

"You were in love with someone else!" Clint yelled.

"And? If she hadn't left nothing would've happened because at the time I loved her more! I'm glad she's gone because if she hadn't I wouldn't have allowed myself to admit I liked him at all. She was my world Clint, she left me and don't you ever forget it." Tony says about to walk away when Clint grabs his arm.

"And don't you ever forget why, He broke you up Tony, she's gone and he's the reason why, now he's gone too. You hate him Tony always have, only now you have a reason to." Clint says angrily before storming out of the room.

The next day Tony walked into the lab looking for Bruce but to his surprise he wasn't there. Feeling the need to get away and be alone Tony goes to the vault but when he got there the door was open and he heard voices from inside, Banner's and Steve's.

"I don't think Tony would be happy with me doing this instead of him Steve, especially in his vault." Banner says uncomfortably.

"I don't care, he can't do it and you can ok, so just do it, you know what I need here better than he does anyway." Steve says in response.

"Alright give me a sec, ok, that hurt?" Bruce asks.

"No, barely felt it." Steve responds.

"Alright, well in just under an hour we'll be done here." Bruce says, Tony runs out to central park collapses on the ground and was about to call his sister when he remembered she's off grid, so he tried Natasha.

"Hello Tony." She says when she answers, just hearing her voice calmed him down a lot, the voice of his hero his whole life.

"Hey Tasha, you're my godmother so I can tell you things right?" Tony asks nervously.

"Yeah of course, why what's going on Tony?" Tasha asks him.

"I think Steve may have broken up with me yesterday but I'm not sure, either way he took Banner to the vault and may or may not have slept with him." Tony says nearly crying.

"Ok Tony calm down, all we know for certain is that he took Banner there, which is bad, so what you're gonna do is avoid him when at the tower and go to the vault every day this week and call me if anything else happens." Natasha tells him in a calming voice.

"Ok Tasha, you know, you may only be my god mother, but you're a better mother than my mum ever was, Peggy's lucky." Tony informs her.

"Thankyou Tony. You ok now?" she asks concerned.

"Okay no, functional yes, I'd better go though, also you should know that Steve moved out." Tony says before hanging up the phone not wanting to talk about it.

"What's wrong with Stark?" Coulson asks, as she was in his office for the phone call.

"Well, Steve moved out took Banner to the vault and may or may not have slept with him. Also I'm really worried about Peggy." Natasha admits.

"Should we be worried?" Coulson asks.

"About Steve? Yes extremely so, even just the taking Banner to the vault is enough to not trust him. Still we can't give anything away to him." Tasha says and Coulson nods.

Meanwhile in 1952 Skye and Fury have been there for three weeks trying to get back while Howard attempts to rebuild the time machine.

"Dammit this isn't going to work Nick! No matter what we try I close my eyes and we are still here, ok I am not our daughter I can't do it." Skye yells frustrated.

"Peg you just need more time." Fury says encouragingly.

"Time Nick is the thing we have plenty of, but that doesn't matter because I simply can't do it and we need to get to the future now and meet them in that vault." Skye says, three weeks ago when they had first arrived Skye and Fury were in the car with Howard when her eyes glazed over and she became nonresponsive. A few minutes later she was fine, in that time she had a vision of the future, and a VV was sent out signalling everyone to get the fuck to the vault screw being discreet.

"And we will Peggy, don't worry. Fact is it doesn't matter how long it takes us, we can still get there at the right time." Fury points out.

"Oh for gods same, Nick open your eyes, last time this happened mum was here for two years. I don't want to be here for two year, I love being with dad, getting to meet and spend time with him, but I want to go home and I can't get us there." Peggy screams when a woman suddenly enters the room.

"Uh, who are you?" the woman asks.

"Ugh, Miley Cyrus." Skye responds sarcastically forgetting she is in the forties.

"Well Miley, why are you here?" she asks, Skye looks shocked for a second before trying desperately to hold back laughter.

"I'm a friend of Howard's, he's helping me out with a problem at the moment, who are you?" Skye asks.

"I'm Maria." She answers. Having a gut feeling Fury grabs Skye's arm once she has walked around a corner, she closes her eyes to attempt to calm down and stop feeling so angry.

"Skye what's wrong?" Fury asks using the name she grew up with because he's realised that she responds better to that when she's angry.

"He's still married to my mother, he still loves her he still calls her his wife. What's she doing here?" Skye says angrily.

"Skye, your mother is dead for him, you can't expect him to wait for her forever when she may never come back." Fury explains slowly. She opens her eyes again. All of a sudden a small boy comes around the corner.

"Who are you?" he asks.

"Who are you?" Skye counters.

"I asked first." The boy defends.

"Well, I'm an adult so that doesn't work with me." Skye says as Fury tries not to laugh at that.

"Tony Stark." He responds and Skye looks shocked.

"I'm Peggy." She replies.

"No you're not, I know Peggy, you're not her." He says angrily, which was adorable when he looked about seven.

"I'm named after that Peggy, I'm Peggy Stark, your godmother Natasha's daughter." Skye explains to the boy.

"Ooh, Daddy told me about you, you're Peggy my sister." Tony says excitedly.

"That's right Anthony, I'm your older sister. Do you know where dad is?" Skye asks smiling hugely at being his big sister.

"Yeah, he's in the study but he doesn't like to be disturbed when he's there." Tony informs them.

"Anthony, has dad been nice to you?" Skye asks.

"Most of the time. Mum says he was different but then some girl visited and went missing. Anyway, he takes me out every Sunday and we do fun stuff just the two of us, he doesn't always notice me and gets angry a lot but every now and then he'll look at me and tell me how proud he is." Tony says smiling proudly.

"That's great Tony. What girl?" Skye asks confused.

"Mum said her name was Milly or Miley, yeah that was it Miley." Tony says.

"Well you know what Anthony, I think he will be better after I go see him, do you want to come?" Skye asks and he nods. She ends up carrying him to the office a fact that Makes Fury attempt to stifle a laugh when he looks over. When they get to the office Skye knocks on the door. "Are you sure your mum isn't in there?" Skye asks and Tony nods.

"Tony, you know you are not to disturb me when I'm in here." Howard yells out and Skye can feel Tony shiver in her arms.

"Dad? It's me Peggy." Skye yells back a few seconds later the door opens.

"Peggy? I was so worried, you just disappeared." Howard says hugging the side of her not holding Tony.

"That was a few minutes ago for me, it worked and we ended up here." Skye explains vaguely for Tony's sake. Howard nods.

"Well, I see you've met Tony." Howard observes.

"Yeah, he's a cool kid." Skye says and Tony hugs her, then she pits him down and Howard hugs him.

"You know I love you and am so proud of you son right?" Howard asks and Tony nods before hugging him again and mouthing thankyou to Skye who nods. Tony then runs off.

"Well, now we know it's possible I might be able to get us back home." Skye says looking to Fury.

"Oh you brought him." Howard says with disdain.

"Yes dad." Skye sates blandly, Howard hugs her again, then Maria comes round the corner and sees the pair hugging.

"Howard, who is this? Oh this is Miley, Howard you said she disappeared." Maria says angrily before waiting expectantly for his explanation.

"Maria, do you remember Natasha?" Howard asks planning to explain what was going on.

"I thought we agreed not to talk about that woman." Maria says.

"Hey, that's my mother you're talking about." Skye says.

"Maria, you know when she ahh died she was pregnant, well she didn't die, she disappeared and this is my daughter." Howard says attempting to put it delicately.

"Howard, she is dead. And even if I believed that she wasn't she left you then. And not twenty years before we met." Maria says looking over Skye.

"Howard you are losing it and I'm not going to stick around for that, I'm taking Tony and we're leaving." Maria yells before walking off to find her son. But Skye runs round the corner and stand in front of her so she can't.

"Look lady, for one lower your voice or Anthony will hear you, and two what dad is saying is true, and finally three I don't care if your leaving but dad and Tony do, you can't just take Tony let him decide." Skye says.

"You can't tell me how to raise my son." Maria says rudely.

"Watch me." She says defiantly.

"I'm not going anywhere." Tony says from the top of the stairs where he was eavesdropping.

"Tony, you are too little to understand these things and you are going with me." Maria says angrily.

"He's seven not three, and he seems to understand the situation a hell of a lot better than you are." Skye says defending Tony, growing up the way she did she believes that children have a right to decide their own fate when it comes to things like these, and knows they aren't as stupid as people think.

"Fine." Maria says before leaving. Skye turns to look at Tony who is crying before she goes to him and picks him up hugging him. She then turns to Howard. Who is standing there shocked.

"Dad, I am so sorry, I didn't mean to cause this regardless of how I felt about the woman." Skye says.

"It's not your fault Peggy." Howard replies still shocked as if the fight hadn't sunk in yet, she was worried if he would feel the same when it did.

"Yeah, tell that to Anthony, he just lost his mother." Skye says handing Tony over to his father.

"Is mummy going to come back?" Tony asks his father in between tears.

"I don't know Tony, I really don't." Howard responds making the boy cry harder.


	17. Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17 – THE SHORT CUT AND THE LONG ROAD

It's been a month since Maria left and she doesn't appear to be coming back anytime soon. Fury and Skye have been doing there best to distract Tony as they both feel responsible but Fury not as much as Skye. Nothing they do however seems to cheer up Howard, at least that Skye's seen. But Fury can see the change in him, every time he sees Tony and Skye playing together he seems a bit better, it's a constant reminder that for this family being almost together Maria left, and though he misses her terribly, what he had wanted more than anything was for his children to one day play together as they are now. It's one of those moments when Howard comes up to Fury to have a discussion Fury's been waiting for for the past few weeks, despite the constant assurances that they were not together.

"So Mr Fury." He begins, "I understand that at the moment you and Peggy are not together however, being a Stark I notice the way you look at her even if you don't. So I'm telling you now as it is possible that when you leave here I will never see either of you again. You hurt her I don't care what time you are in, I will hunt you down." Howard says in a way that actually scares him.

"Yes sir." Fury responds and Howard nods. Skye notices the change in atmosphere and comes running over from where she was playing with an older version of lego basically with Anthony.

"Hey dad, you know I just realise how old you got!" she states.

"Hey watch it miss, your birthday's coming up and if you're not careful your present will go to Tony." Howard says and she gives him puppy dog eyes.

"Wait it's my birthday soon?" Skye asks surprised as she didn't know when her birthday was.

"Yes, you don't know your birthday? I mean I know Nat doesn't celebrate hers but you'd think she'd have told you when it was." Howard says dumbfounded.

"No, I know when my birthday is obviously I just don't know what date it is now, too much time travel." Skye lies.

"Peggy Melinda Stark." Howard begins before Tony comes running up.

"Hey, anyone want to play hide and seek?" Tony asks.

"Ooh me! I do Anthony, I've never played before but you can teach me." Skye suggests, the three men, or two and a half, just look at her.

"How have you never played hide and seek?" Fury asks and for once Howard agrees with him, as does Tony but Tony doesn't know how amazing that is yet.

"Well, I've hid from people before when they tried to find me but generally if they found me it wasn't fun, kind of put me off the game." Skye explains to the confusion of everyone but Fury as she hadn't told her father that she didn't grow up with Tasha yet.

"Alright, it's every father's right to be apart of their child's first hide and seem game, so I'm in." Howard exclaims.

"Nick?" Skye asks laying on the puppy dog eyes to which he rolls his eyes but agrees to play. Two and a half hours later they have all finished playing though Skye and Tony played three more rounds when the others called quits.

"So, Pegs do you and Mr Fury want to come to the playground with me and Tony tomorrow? It's Saturday so I'm not working." Howard explains.

"We'd love to." Skye responds after looking over at Fury to get his agreement. Then there was a knock at the door. The group hears Jarvis answer it and a few seconds later Peggy Carter walked around the corner.

"Oh, sorry Howard I wasn't aware you had visitors." She says when she walks around. Skye can't help but smile at the thought of this woman being Steve's first love.

"Oh they aren't visitors, one lives here now and again and the other is staying til, the two go home." Howard responds and Peggy looks Dizzied for a minute.

"So you're Peggy Carter?" Skye asks amazed as she has never met the woman before though she has heard a lot about her.

"Oh right big moment, Pegs meet Peggy Carter, Peggy meet Peggy Melinda Stark." Howard introduces. Fury kneels down to Tony's eye level to talk to him.

"Hey Tony, you want to go take a look at that circuit board you made a few years ago that you wanted to show me?" Fury asks thinking that the other three could use some alone time, Tony nods before running off and dragging Fury behind him.

"So this is your daughter Howard, I understand why you wouldn't tell me her name now. Lovely to meet you Ms Stark." Peggy says while shaking Skye's hand.

"Nice to finally meet you too, mum talks about you all the time." Skye responds.

"Yes and how is your mother?" Peggy asks.

"She's been better, some not so good stuff going on at home." Skye answers. The three talk for an hour before the other two reappear, for another hour everyone watches Skye and Tony either playing or having a sibling argument that both enjoy way too much.

Meanwhile in 2015 on the bus Natasha is in Coulson's office as they discuss possible reasons for Steve taking Banner to the lab.

"Alright, look we can't find out at the moment there is no way to be sure, what matters is that we need to stop blindly trusting people just because they say they believe us." Natasha points out after an hour of talking in circles and never getting anywhere.

"I know I just don't know what else to do Tash, Fury's gone, Skye's gone, Steve may or may not be trust worthy and Stark is losing it. Not to mention how un- Natasha like you've been." Coulson says admitting how lost he feels. "I've always trusted the system it's what I do, now that that's gone I don't know what to do."

"Well, I'm not a shrink but you need to believe in the system again, to do that you need to save it which is what we are doing. Steve is trust worthy, we both know it, we just don't have evidence and can't risk it. Fury and Skye are coming back, they aren't in any immediate danger that's why they left and as for me, people change over time, just because you didn't see it doesn't mean it didn't take time." Natasha replies. A few minutes later after finishing the discussion and not being able to debate Stark losing it, Natasha heads down to the middle of the ship and sits on the kitchen bench.

"Agent Romanoff, is everything okay?" Ward asks.

"Stark Ward, my name is stark, and no it's not. But it's a lot better than it could be, you?" Natasha responds as politely as she can manage.

"Well, my rookie is missing and no one seems to be doing anything. I mean I'm aware that people are doing what they can to find her and Director Fury I just need to do something but there isn't anything I can do." Ward explains and Natasha nods.

"Ward, I'm not gonna tell you that all you can do is let others do their job and find her because that's bull shit. But trust me when I say that if you believe she can come back and you never give up on her then she'll find a way back on her own. That is one of the very few things that I really do believe." Natasha says. Ward nods and they sit in silence for a while until Natasha says "I'm gonna go find Mels."

"Hey, how you doing?" Natasha asks as she walks into the cockpit.

"Fine." May responds.

"May, are you worried about Skye?" Natasha asks as she knows that while they aren't close Melinda is quite fond of the hacker without knowing who her family is.

"You mean your daughter?" May asks and Natasha looks at her unable to hide her absolute shock.

"How did you?" Natasha asks unable to finish the question.

"You first came here extremely upset presumably about losing your daughter, but considering I was with you the first time you were pregnant and lost the baby I know that wasn't why, and knowing you have access to time travel and married Howard, you could have had the baby and sent her back in time for whatever reason before finding her again, something happened between the time you got here and the time Skye went missing that made you a lot happier and now worried sick about her, it was the only logical option." May says listing her reasons.

"You know May, sometimes it doesn't have to be logical, remember when you used to look at emotions as well, back when you had them yourself." Natasha says before storming out of the cockpit and to her bunk. She was upset because she had way too many weaknesses and because of that May knew who Skye was, and May couldn't be trusted with that knowledge at the moment. She was so glad Skye was gone, she was too young to be in danger by someone she trusted. That night Tony called her again.

"Hey Tony, what's up?" she asks when she picks up the phone.

"Well, your birthday's in a week, just wondering what you want for it." Tony explains.

"Anthony Edward Stark how did you know it was my birthday in a week?" Natasha asks already knowing the answer.

"My dad told me. And besides Peggy would come over every year on your birthday to make sure dad was dealing ok. I mean he always was but Peggy liked to double check." Tony explains.

"Couldn't your mother watch him?" Natasha asks confused.

"Nat that's not funny." Tony says clearly upset though Natasha has no idea why.

"I wasn't trying to be I was honestly asking a question." Natasha responds.

"Nat, I don't have a mother. She left when I was seven. How do you not know that?" Tony asks.

"Tony, you and I talk about Maria all the time. She died in the car crash with your father and ohh, I'm sensing some sort of time travel, Tony I know this is upsetting but why did your mum leave?" Natasha asks.

"She left because she was an idiot who wouldn't believe evidence in front of her and was judgemental and jumped to conclusions without pausing to think about her son. That's why, because despite three people telling her the truth she refused to believe Peggy was my sister. You happy Nat?" Tony asks sarcastically clearly very upset.

"Tony I'm sorry, it's just last time I spoke you grew up with a mother, obviously Peggy's somehow got back in time and screwed with things." Natasha responds.

"It's not her fault that Maria is an idiot." Tony says harshly.

"I know, I'm not blaming her I just mean she altered history, though the amount of times I've done the same I can hardly talk. What I'm getting at Tony is I know where Fury and Peggy are, they are back in time somewhere though how they got there I have no idea since you have the only working time machine in this time." Natasha explains.

"Oh, ok. Well anyway back to your birthday." Tony requests clearly trying to change the subject.

"Well Tony, I don't know, I don't celebrate my birthday so." Natasha explains.

"That's ok, I think I know you pretty well. Oh I have a great idea." Tony says before hanging up.

"Goodbye to you to." Natasha says to the phone.

Meanwhile Steve is in his apartment. A few hours ago he had taken Bruce to the vault because it was the only safe place to perform the tests and that had equipment. The test showed that his and Bruce's blood had a high white blood cell count and slightly elevated electrical activity in his brain. Two days later he got Bruce to run the tests again. And as he suspected both had decreased but were still above normal.

"Alright, now is time to tell the others. They won't take kindly to the fact that you're here, sure you want to say?" Steve asks.

"Yeah I'm sure, I'm not going anywhere." Bruce responds. "But why won't Clint be here?" he asks.

"These results don't explain everything." Steve replies.

"You haven't even told me what this means." Bruce says waving the results around.

"That doesn't matter, wait here they should all be here within the hour. Or hour and a half in Tasha's case." Steve says before getting his phone and sending out the VV program that brings everyone to the vault no matter what.


	18. Chapter 18

CHAPTER 18 – PARANOIA

Twenty minutes after the VV went out Natasha and Coulson arrive.

"Steve what the hell is he doing here?" Natasha asks when she enters and sees Bruce there, she suspected that he might be, but seeing it was different.

"Agent Coulson? You're dead, you died!" Bruce said raising his voice at the end.

"Dr Banner please remain calm." Coulson requests.

"Oh, it doesn't matter, hasn't in a while your all safe." Bruce says knowing that since he tested the hulk and nothing happened, no matter what the other guy hasn't come out.

"You what now?" Natasha asks.

"It's one of the things we need to talk about when the others get here." Steve explains. Though Natasha looked a lot less than convinced.

Back in 1979

"Alright dad, I'm going to try again I said goodbye to Anthony, I just know it will work so now it's your turn." Skye says before running over to him and hugging him tightly.

"The last eight months have been fun Peggy, I know you can't but I wish you could stay." Howard tells his daughter.

"I know, I wish I could stay, I've never felt more at home anywhere than here. I love you so much daddy." Skye says surprising both herself and her father. A minute later they broke apart and Fury walks in with a now eight year old Tony on his back having a piggy back ride.

"Do you guys have to go?" Tony asks.

"Sorry kid, but yeah. Mum needs my help with some stuff." Skye says kneeling down to his height level once Fury put him on the ground.

"I wish she was my mum." Tony admits.

"Anthony, despite everything your mother was a good mother, you've told me stories before even if you don't remember them. She was very bad and horrible leaving you but it was my fault she did. Just remember she was a bad mother not a bad person." Skye says not truly believing her own words.

"I still wish Natasha was my mother." Tony says and Skye hugs him.

"Alright little man, I got to go. Remember if someone bully's you or your friend what do you do?" Skye asks.

"Subtly remind them that my dad builds weapons for the military." He says.

"Good job." Skye says before ruffling his hair. Then Fury and her stand in the middle of the room. Fury attempts to ignore Howard's glare when he wraps his arms around Skye's waist for the transport. Of course the two are sort of complicatedly togetherish now though they haven't talked about it yet. Then Skye thinks about Natasha before closing her eyes. She think about the V message and how much she needs to be there then when she is fully concentrated Howard jumps and says boo really loudly to scare the crap out of her. When she opens her eyes she is still in the living room at the mansion only it looks to be the right time. The two then head down to the vault where they find Coulson; Natasha; Banner and Steve.

"Hey, oh my gosh I did it!" Skye squeals jumping at Fury who catches her and twirls her around.

"I told you, you would!" Fury says before putting her down and putting his arm around her waist.

"You lied!" Tony says all of a sudden as he walks into the vault.

"Did not it's true!" Skye replies knowing what this is about, "I was conceived first!" Skye says at the same time as Tony says "I was born first." This continued for a little while until Natasha yelled.

"STOP IT!"

"Sorry mum." They both say though Tony said the mum clearly sarcastically.

"You are the most adorable eight year old." Skye says pinching his cheek.

"Yeah meanwhile don't forget the hall way Peggs." Tony says referring to the time he walked down a hall way and saw Skye and Fury kissing. It was the first time that happened so they freaked and made him promise not to tell anyone. "Oh, and thanks for the bike, used it a lot." Tony says to Fury who nods, the bike had been his eighth birthday present.

"Okay, now that everyone is here I will explain what's going on and why I brought Banner here." Steve says and everyone looks at him expectantly.

"I spoke to Peggy, the older one I mean, she mentioned a virus that went through the entire SSR base after the tesseract had gone missing. It elevated white blood cells as well as slightly increased electrical bran activity. It also caused paranoia. So I had Banner run a test and both his and my blood and brain showed these symptoms. I think the people who noticed something in SHIELD were the people who spent the most time with the tesseract, Barton guarded it for months before it became a problem, and he's the one that this doesn't automatically explain everything." Steve says pausing a minute to sink in.

"You think that everything we thought was going on was because of paranoia, the things we thought were suspicious was about people being secretive." Natasha realises.

"If you think about it, it explains almost everything." Steve says and everyone falls silent.

"Except that phone call. It explains what future Skye said about us needing to deal with it but Barton's phone call?" Skye asks.

"I have a theory on that." Banner says speaking for the first time and everyone looks at him. "Well as Steve said he spent more time around that thing than any of us so it would make sense that his symptoms were worse. If he thought SHIELD was compromised he might have been trying to secretly get out or something to that affect." Banner explains.

"Where were you two?" Steve asks Fury and Skye.

"1979. Good year for everyone but the Stark family." Skye adds bitterly.

"It wasn't your fault Skye." Tony says.

"Anthony I hate myself for saying this and you know it but you were seven, you didn't understand what happened exactly and you weren't even born when we first met." Skye says.

"Peggy I know damn well what happened I was sitting on that stairwell listening to that fight the whole damn time I heard everything so don't think for a second that I don't know what happened. But at the end of it Peggy you gave her a choice, walk away or stay and she left. That's on her not you!" Tony says angrily.

"Anthony I grew up alone and without a mother and thanks to me my little brother did as well, so don't say that it's not my fault because things like that don't happen to a person twice if they aren't the problem." Skye yells while heavily crying before storming out of the vault and to what was her room in the mansion. A few minutes later Fury walked in.

"I don't want to hear it Nick." Skye says though she barely got it out between sobs.

"Skye, time can be re-written." Fury says simply, she looks up at him.

"What?" she asks.

"Time can be re-written, and in time right now there are a million million versions of every one of us living out our lives at different points. So why should there only be one of you, time can be re-written." Fury says before leaving to let her figure it out.

"Time can be re-written." She says to herself before her face lights up. "Time can be re-written!" she says happier before closing her eyes and focusing on the day she was left at the orphanage by Natasha. When she opens her eyes the room looks lived in again. She sneaks out the mansion being careful not to be seen before going to the orphanage. She waits around the corner as she sees Natasha walking away from the place crying before walking in.

"Hi, I'd like to adopt a baby girl." Skye says.

"Of course, what was your name?" the nun asks. Skye recognises her as one of the older nuns from when she was there as a kid.

"Peggy Stark." Skye says thinking that her last name may help here.

"Ohh, Ms Stark, how old a girl would you like?" the nun asks, Skye fights off the angry look as this nun is talking about the kids like they are carrots at a grocery store.

"A young baby please, I want a poor orphan to remember their whole life growing up happily." She says remembering the kind of crap bad people said to get kids who were then abused, the nuns always fell for it. Half an hour later Skye walks out holding baby her. "Hey mini me, man am I an adorable baby. I'm going to take you to your father so you can get raised with Anthony, but don't worry, I'll drop you off before he is born so you are older. Though being a younger sibling may be nice. Nah older." Skye says to, I suppose, herself. Skye travels in time to a year before Tony is born and puts baby her on the door step making sure her mother's wedding ring is obviously shown so that Howard knows who it is. Then she transports herself back to her time and is surprised to find she has new memories of growing up at home as well as memories of how she grew up the first time. When she gets there she walks into the vault once again only now looking a whole lot happier than anyone, with the exception of Tony, have ever seen her.

"Ok you did that on purpose." Tony says as she made herself the older sibling.

"Yeah, I'm just sorry it didn't stop me from going back in time with Nick and driving Maria away." Skye says sadly. Then Clint comes running down the stairs making every gun in the room turn to him.

"Wow, ok, I came to apologise. I was being manipulated but I finally got a lead on the guy and he's dead now. Tyler Blackmore, he's been following Natasha and threatened to kill her if I didn't do what he said." Barton explains, "When I killed him he had a gun trained on the door to the mansion waiting for her to come out because I refused to kill Hill."

"I didn't even know." Natasha says surprised.

"Probably because of the virus." Barton says and everyone looks at him. "What, I've been keeping tabs on you guys since I knew when I realised you had my phone that none of you trusted me. Which was fair enough."

"Yeah it was, because being annoyed with people when they blackmail you is fair." Tony says while not so subtly looking at Skye.

"What did you do?" Natasha asks.

"Let's just say time can be re-written." Peggy says. While locking eyes with Fury.

_**Well that's the end. I hope everyone enjoyed the story. If there is anything anyone thinks I didn't explain or left out that needed to be done please let me know and I may do another chapter to tie up loose ends I missed. Thankyou to everyone who followed and favourite or even just read my story it means a lot to me!**_

_**A big thankyou to Skyeward MusicLover and beverlie4055 who reviewed nearly every chapter! You guys are amazing. And thankyou to everyone else who reviewed as well.**_

_**Until Next time….**_

_**~Alyxx**_


	19. Chapter 19 - Authors end note! :)

So as it turns out there are a lot on unanswered questions, then one I didn't notice and that really bugs me is Skye's age. The review said - How would Skye be the same age she is if she went back in time and made sure she was "on the scene" before tony, isn't he like 40? And also wouldn't there be two Skye's then? –

I'm going to explain what I think would happen.

When Skye got back to the future her age would have caught up with her when her memories did, kind of like a big woosh of memories and when she snaps out of it she's 45 because I'm saying that Tony is 44. And as for there being two Skye's I think that if time caught up on her like that she would be the only one, because time was correcting itself with her memories and age so I don't think it would allow a paradox by having two Skye's otherwise she wouldn't get older or get the new/old memories because she wouldn't have been the Skye to live them.

On another note there was a request that I do another story just based around Skye and Fury's relationship. It would start I think from when they are back in time to explain what they actually did while they were there and how they got together. It would go on to explain what happened when they got back to the future but also what happened with everyone else after they left the vault at the end of the story. There was also a question about what happened with Tony and Steve's relationship which would be in this story as well. I'm wondering if anyone would like me to write the story? Please tell me by PM or in the reviews!

Until next time,

~Alyxx


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